Last Survivor Pulled From Wreckage

Rescuers freed the last survivor of a subway crash from a heap of tangled wreckage Saturday, and transit officials were investigating why one train rammed the rear of another, killing three people.

The crash during the Friday evening rush hour was the first fatal accident on the subway system since it opened in 1954.

“Why? Why did this happen?,” a shaken Toronto transit commissioner, Case Ootes, said Saturday. “There are supposed to be fail-safe instruments to prevent this.”

At least 36 people were hospitalized, with all but six released by Saturday after being treated for cuts and bruises, hospital officials said. Both train drivers survived.

Emergency crews struggled in 100-degree temperatures in the sooty tunnel to free screaming passengers from the jagged tangle of metal. One trapped woman died shortly after having limbs amputated.

The last survivor was freed early Saturday, about eight hours after the crash. He was in good condition despite being caught up to his knees in twisted metal, said police Inspector Mike Sale.

Investigators started sorting through the debris on Saturday, but said they did not expect to find any more bodies or survivors.

The transit commission’s acting general manager, Arnold Dube, said transit officials have “no idea” what caused the accident.

The subway system relies on two mechanisms to prevent subway collisions, Toronto Councilman Joe Pantalone said.

In addition to lights in the tunnels, operators monitor train locations at a central control station. The operators can shut down the whole system if trains come too close to one another, Pantalone said.

The accident occurred at about 6 p.m. Friday when a train full of commuters ran into the rear of another that was stopped between the Dupont and St. Clair West stations in the uptown area of Forest Hill. The stopped train was about to go out of service.

“It’s unlike anything I’ve ever seen before,” said Dr. Andrew McCallum, who performed blood transfusions underground. “There’s twisted metal, wreckage, sharp edges everywhere. It’s really horrific.”

Rescue workers said they could not tell the difference between one train and another when they went underground just after the accident.