Vandal Intended to Derail Train

Transit officials said Monday that whoever wedged a concrete block under a Northridge railroad track last week was trying to derail a train.

On Monday, the Metrolink board posted a $10,000 reward for information in the case.

The damage to the track jarred a Metrolink train carrying 300 passengers from Oxnard to downtown Los Angeles on Thursday, officials said. They said it was the worst act of vandalism in Metrolink’s 10-year history.

“This was such a serious threat,” Metrolink spokeswoman Sharon Gavin said.

The jagged, 2-foot-long block of concrete had been jammed under the track at the Nordhoff Street overpass. It lifted 20 feet of rail 2 inches, enough to derail a fast-moving train, Gavin said.

The Metrolink train was traveling 70 mph when it bumped over the elevated track. For several hours afterward, trains slowed to 5 mph through the area, Gavin said. The rail was fixed later Thursday.

Under state law, a conviction for attempting to derail a train carries a maximum sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole. If a derailment kills another person, the offense can carry the death penalty.

Anyone with information about the incident should contact the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department at (909) 392-8413.