Amtrak train 188 may have been shot at, but that does not explain it doing double the speed limit

http://6abc.com/news/amtrak-ceo-railroad-takes-full-responsibility-for-crash/718111/

The National Transportation Safety Board said on Friday that an interview with an assistant conductor indicated something may have hit Amtrak 188 before Tuesday night's wreck.

Robert Sumwalt of the NTSB described an interview with one of the train's assistant conductors.

The assistant conductor allegedly told investigators that she believed she heard an engineer say something may have hit his train or his train had been shot at, the assistant conductor recalled.

 There were reports of a SEPTA train being hit by an object shortly before the Amtrak crash earlier this week, but there was no known connection.

On Thursday, the NTSB said that in the last minute or so before the derailment, the Washington-to-New York train sped up from 70 mph until it reached more than 100 mph at a sharp bend where the maximum speed is 50 mph.

Sumwalt said Thursday it was unclear whether the speed was increased manually by engineer Brandon Bostian.

So far, investigators have found no problems with the track, the signals or the locomotive, and the train was running on time, Sumwalt said.