Louisville Zoo train wrecked despite daily checks

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) - A miniature train that derailed and injured 22 people at the Louisville Zoo underwent daily inspections and passed a state examination in January, safety officials said Tuesday.

The zoo reopened at its normal time Tuesday morning while state investigators in charge of amusement rides worked to figure out why the train derailed Monday on ground-level tracks in a bend behind the gorilla exhibit. The train ride, which loops two miles around the zoo, remained closed.

Louisville Zoo train derailment report released

Read the entire report on the Louisville Zoo train derailment here.

Speed, poor condition, and inadequate training caused the train at the Louisville Zoo to "lay over" and severely injure several riders, according to a report by Kentucky's Department of Agriculture. It imposed a $37,000 fine against the zoo Thursday.

The train went off the tracks and injured 22 of the 30 people on board the open-air cars, several of them children.

The report makes a distinction between a train laying over, which it says usually happens because a train is going too fast through a curve, and a derailment, which usually happens because of a defect in the train's wheels or on the track itself.

EXCLUSIVE: Documents say mistakes, incompetence led to Zoo train derailment

LOUISVILLE, KY (WDRB, FOX41) - Emergency lights that didn't work and warning buzzers disconnected, WDRB has obtained exclusive details about what led to the Louisville Zoo Train derailment nearly two years ago.

"Zoo officials admit in deposition, sworn testimony that the train should never have left the track," said Attorney Ron Hillerich.