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Emergency responders at the Metrorail crash on the border of Maryland and Washington, D.C.

When two Metro trains collided in Washington yesterday afternoon, killing at least nine and injuring more than 75 others, scores of first responders led by the District of Columbia Fire Department and the Washington Metropolitan Police Department, along with other law enforcement agencies—including the FBI—arrived on the scene.

Because the accident happened within the National Capital Region, our National Capital Response Squad and other Bureau personnel swung into action at the request of the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) to assist with evidence recovery and victim identification.

“We have been here since the beginning,” said Special Agent Christopher Combs, who heads the National Capital Response Squad out of our Washington Field Office. Combs said about 20 Bureau personnel from his squad and others are working at the crash scene and will remain there as long as NTSB needs them.

FBI Evidence Response Team personnel at Metrorail train crash.

In addition to Combs’ squad, also on hand are members of our Washington, Pittsburgh, and Laboratory Division-based Evidence Response Teams (ERTs), other area personnel, and a variety of Bureau equipment, including a mobile command center. Also, soon after the crash—the worst in Metro’s history—we ramped up our Command and Tactical Operations Center at the Washington Field Office to coordinate Bureau efforts at the scene.

Beyond being good neighbors, the Bureau has agreements with all our National Capital Region partners, the NTSB, and other federal agencies to provide support if requested in the event of a crisis like this one.

Resources:
- For more on our National Capital Response Squad
- Visit our Washington Field Office website  

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