A man who was injured when he was struck by a Metro Red Line train deep inside a subway tunnel in the Westlake area of Los Angeles was expected to survive, authorities said Monday.
It was reported at 8:11 p.m. Sunday in the 600 block of Alvarado Street, about 200 yards west of the Westlake/MacArthur Park Station, the Los Angeles Fire Department’s Brian Humphrey said.
“He was somewhere deep in the tunnel,” Los Angeles Police Lt. Leonard Perez of the Transit Services Division said. “The rail operator felt a bump and stopped.”
The operator called for help and it was determined the man was under the rails, Perez said.
“He was alert and talking to fire personnel,” the lieutenant said. He was taken to County USC Medical Center. The extent of the man’s injuries was not immediately released.
The injuries were not believed life-threatening and the man had stable vital signs, Sgt. T. Jenneman of the Transit Services Division said
While it wasn’t known for certain why the man was in the tunnel, Perez said the man was probably seeking refuge from the cold.
“There was no other reason for anyone to be in there and we’ve had problems with that in the past,” he said.
The track where the crash occurred was blocked during the investigation but the trains continued to move, Perez said. They “single-tracked,” sharing the unblocked track around the crash scene, he said.
The track was reopened later and in use when train service resumed Monday morning, Jenneman said.