Dallas Area Rapid Transit estimates repair work will continue through Wednesday on its downtown system after a fire truck fell on the tracks over the weekend.
A Dallas Fire-Rescue engine fell from the highway onto the DART tracks below Interstate 345 and South Good Latimer Expressway.
Four firefighters were injured but are in stable condition, according to the department. DART officials said the crash was “severe and caused major damage” to the train’s overhead tension wires used to supply electricity to the trains.
As of Tuesday afternoon, the DART team said they’ve completed repairs to more than half of the damaged system.
Spokeswoman Jeamy Molina said because of the location of the accident, the entire train network was impacted.
“The incident occurred at a very critical location for us where all four rail lines meet, and it's causing some major service disruptions,” Molina said.
She said there was also damage to the train tracks and ground where the fire engine landed.
Fourteen shuttle buses were dispersed to replace train service in affected areas and has increased to 21 since Monday.
Light rail locations being serviced include Cityplace/Uptown, Deep Ellum, Pearl/Arts District, West End, EBJ/Union and Victory stations.
Restoration to the train services began Monday evening but “might take a significant amount of time to repair,” DART officials said in a news release.
“We're hoping and they've been working as quickly and as safely as they can to have things back to normal operations Wednesday evening,” Molina said.
Penelope Rivera is KERA’s news intern. Got a tip? Email Penelope at privera@kera.org.
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