By Mike Schnitzel
In scenes reminiscent of a disaster movie, train passengers jumped from trains onto the ground or nearby platforms rather than wait for service to be restored.
"If they were a business, they would be out of business," Gerard P. Bringmann, chairman of the Commuters Council, said of the railroad. "It makes you wonder how abandoned these people felt that they had to bail out of these trains."
The Commuters Council was created by the state Legislature in 1981 to represent the interests of LIRR riders. Bringmann said he would ask the organization's executive board to vote on requesting an investigation by the Metropolitan Transportation Authority's inspector general at the council's meeting on Thursday, after the Herald went to press.
"I am confident they will agree with me," Bringmann said. "With technology these days, there shouldn't be this lack of communication."
Some 30,000 commuters were affected by the delays when officials suspended service in parts of Nassau County at about 6:30 p.m. last Friday to remove a power line that had fallen on the tracks just east of the Valley Stream station, according to LIRR spokesman James Castle.
Mark Vale was among thousands of tired train riders who were stranded at the end of the work week. Vale's typical commute home to Oceanside takes a little over an hour, but that day's trip turned into a six-hour ordeal. "It was a total disaster," said Vale, whose train came to a stop just before reaching Valley Stream. "There was supposed to be a diesel train to pick us up, but it never came. It was total mass confusion. Guys were opening up the doors on their own and jumping off the train."
Trains resumed running just after 10 p.m., Castle said. Long Island Power Authority spokesman Michael Lowndes said that the downed power line was repaired at about 11:30 p.m. The wire that fell was a static line, which does not carry a current. Lowndes said that LIPA had not yet determined why it fell, and that an investigation was under way.
Another LIRR spokesperson, Susan McGowan, explained that service on the Babylon, Far Rockaway, West Hempstead and Long Beach lines as well as the Montauk branch was delayed when officials had to shut off power to the third rail at seven stations along those lines. McGowan said that the rails were without power longer because of the passengers who jumped off trains.
Rachel Henenberg of Woodmere said that the lack of communication caused anxiety and frustration among riders on her train. "I didn't see any conductor for four hours," Henenberg said. "The only time I saw a conductor was when they took my ticket. People were jumping from the train because no one knew what was going on and they weren't giving us any information."
Castle said that crews are directed to make announcements regarding any stoppages in services. "They should be telling [riders] about the delays and the reasons for them," he said.
Robert Teigman of Lynbrook, a senior at Lehigh University in Pennsylvania, was home for the weekend and planned on visiting his girlfriend in the city. When Teigman arrived at the Long Beach station, however, he realized that the ride wouldn't be as easy as it usually is. "After about 15 minutes of deliberating, I decided to drive in," Teigman said. "I wish they would have said how long the delay would be. There were people waiting there who figured service would come back in 20 minutes, half an hour, but it didn't."
Comments about this story? MSchnitzel@liherald.com or (516) 569-4000 ext. 265.
