NTSB Opens Public Docket for Amtrak Train Derailment in Montana

2/21/2023

(This photo taken on Sept. 26, 2021, shows the aerial view of the accident scene, derailed train, and debris. Photo courtesy of

​​​​​(This photo taken on Sept. 26, 2021, shows the aerial view of the accident scene, derailed train, and debris. Photo courtesy of The Billings (Montana) Gazette.)​

Contains 3,100 pages of documents

WASHINGTON (Feb. 21, 2023) — The National Transportation Safety Board opened the public docket Tuesday for its ongoing investigation of the Sept. 25, 2021, derailment of Amtrak’s Empire Builder passenger train near Joplin, Montana. 

The docket for this investigation includes more than 3,100 pages of factual information, including reports on operations, mechanical, track and engineering, signal and train control, and crashworthiness/survival factors. The docket also includes interview transcripts, photographs and other investigative materials.

The docket contains only factual information collected by NTSB investigators; it does not provide the final report or a probable cause. No conclusions about how or why the derailment happened should be drawn from the information within the docket. The NTSB will issue a final report at a later date that will include analysis, findings, recommendations, and probable cause determinations related to the derailment.

The accident happened when a westbound Amtrak Train derailed five cars while in a right-hand curve on BNSF Railway Company main track. The train consisted of two locomotives and 10 cars. Three passengers died and ​49 passengers and crew were injured. 

​​The public docket for this investigation is available online​ at NTSB Docket - Docket Managment System​.

Additional material may be added to the docket as it becomes available. 

To report an incident/accident or if you are a public safety agency, please call 1-844-373-9922 or 202-314-6290 to speak to a Watch Officer at the NTSB Response Operations Center (ROC) in Washington, DC (24/7).


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