NEW YORK (WPVI) — Amtrak and NJ Transit services have been suspended Friday morning due to a train fire.
An Amtrak maintenance vehicle caught fire in a Hudson River tunnel between New York and New Jersey early Friday, suspending Penn Station service for commuters.
Two Amtrak work trains seem to have collided, impacting the electrical system and igniting the fire, MTA Chief Janno Lieber said.
“We are all dependent on Amtrak’s broken infrastructure,” Lieber said during a news conference Friday.
The issue is also causing a ripple effect for trains going in and out of Philadelpiha’s 30th Street Station, leaving many travelers frustrated ahead of weekend plans.
Several people said they were not notified about train cancellations or delays. Action News has reached out to Amtrak about that, but have not yet heard back.
Amtrak initally said on social media that trains would be suspended until at least noon but have since changed language to say they hope to have services back later this afternoon.
There was a heavy emergency response at 10th Avenue and 31st Street, where a thick cloud of black smoke filled the street around 1:30 a.m.
“We had to go through an emergency exit to extinguish the fire, that was the closest option to us. It would have been a significantly difficult stretch of the hose line to go through actually Penn Station itself so we had to go through the emergency exit,” FDNY Deputy Chief Michael Barvels said.
A man who was on a train when it passed by the fire said he was shocked and confused as to why the train was allowed to pass by the fire.
“There was this sort of explosion that occurred, we were stuck between 5-8 minutes,” he said. “For me personally I was pretty shocked…why would you ride us right through it?”
The engine went up in flames, prompting firefighters to call a second alarm and run hoses into the yard to bring the fire under control.
“Very heavy smoke condition, high heat, a lot of hazards down there, tripping hazards, electrical hazards, but our units, we’re trained for this,” Barvels said.
Authorities say five workers, believed to be railroad employees, were injured and treated for smoke inhalation.
Two of those injuries are considered serious, while three others refused medical attention.
Meantime riders were left scrambling. There were long lines, confused commuters, and people on their phones trying to figure out how to get to their destination from Newark Penn Station.
Many commuters had to transfer to PATH trains to get into the city.
“I just literally came into the station and looked at the board and saw all the trains is canceled so that was a huge shock to everybody,” said Yves Pierre, a commuter.
“I heard about it this morning I take the train, it’s NJ Transit so you just have to expect these things,” said Eric Jarmon, a commuter.
NJ Transit:
– Midtown Direct service is being diverted to Hoboken. NJ TRANSIT rail tickets and passes are being cross honored by NJ TRANSIT and private carrier bus and PATH at Newark Penn Station, Hoboken and 33rd Street, New York.
(ABC News contributed to this report.)
Copyright © 2026 WPVI-TV. All Rights Reserved.
