01-16-2009, 04:03 AM
Well-wishers warned to use care along train route
1/15/2009, 7:54 p.m. ET
By SARAH BRUMFIELD
The Associated Press
BALTIMORE (AP) — State and local governments are warning well-wishers who want to wave to President-elect Barack Obama as he passes through on his "Whistle Stop Tour" from Philadelphia to Washington on Saturday to stay away from the railroad tracks.
People are being warned to stay 150 feet away from the tracks and live overhead wires and cautioned not to climb nearby poles or structures, said U.S. Secret Service spokesman Darrin Blackford.
The Maryland Emergency Management Agency is warning people to watch from the southbound side of the tracks and avoid the southbound tracks.
Authorities don't want a repeat of the 1968 crash that killed two people and injured four more in a crowd gathered in Elizabeth, N.J., to see Robert F. Kennedy's funeral train. They were hit by a train traveling in the opposite direction.
Some jurisdictions are encouraging people to gather at designated stations and overlooks along the route on Saturday. Anyone who approaches tracks is in danger from high-power lines and trains traveling on the tracks.
Amtrak warned that trains traveling between Philadelphia and Washington that day could be delayed 30 minutes to 60 minutes. Some trains may have to hold in place for a time and more than a dozen trains will bypass Wilmington while the station is closed for the event there.
Air space over the train and the events along the way will be secured, the Secret Service's Blackford said. Major roads or highways aren't expected to close during the tour, he said, but some overpasses along the route could be secured.
Obama's 135-mile tour is meant to mirror Abraham Lincoln's journey by train from Philadelphia to Washington for his inauguration. However, assassination fears forced Lincoln to keep a much lower profile on his 1861 journey.
Obama's tour begins in Philadelphia, where the president-elect will speak at the 30th Street Station around 10 a.m. Saturday before he and his family depart. They will be accompanied by a group of "everyday Americans" who have met Obama or Vice President-elect Joe Biden at some point and told them a compelling story. Members of this group will introduce Obama and Biden at each of the events along the tour.
1/15/2009, 7:54 p.m. ET
By SARAH BRUMFIELD
The Associated Press
BALTIMORE (AP) — State and local governments are warning well-wishers who want to wave to President-elect Barack Obama as he passes through on his "Whistle Stop Tour" from Philadelphia to Washington on Saturday to stay away from the railroad tracks.
People are being warned to stay 150 feet away from the tracks and live overhead wires and cautioned not to climb nearby poles or structures, said U.S. Secret Service spokesman Darrin Blackford.
The Maryland Emergency Management Agency is warning people to watch from the southbound side of the tracks and avoid the southbound tracks.
Authorities don't want a repeat of the 1968 crash that killed two people and injured four more in a crowd gathered in Elizabeth, N.J., to see Robert F. Kennedy's funeral train. They were hit by a train traveling in the opposite direction.
Some jurisdictions are encouraging people to gather at designated stations and overlooks along the route on Saturday. Anyone who approaches tracks is in danger from high-power lines and trains traveling on the tracks.
Amtrak warned that trains traveling between Philadelphia and Washington that day could be delayed 30 minutes to 60 minutes. Some trains may have to hold in place for a time and more than a dozen trains will bypass Wilmington while the station is closed for the event there.
Air space over the train and the events along the way will be secured, the Secret Service's Blackford said. Major roads or highways aren't expected to close during the tour, he said, but some overpasses along the route could be secured.
Obama's 135-mile tour is meant to mirror Abraham Lincoln's journey by train from Philadelphia to Washington for his inauguration. However, assassination fears forced Lincoln to keep a much lower profile on his 1861 journey.
Obama's tour begins in Philadelphia, where the president-elect will speak at the 30th Street Station around 10 a.m. Saturday before he and his family depart. They will be accompanied by a group of "everyday Americans" who have met Obama or Vice President-elect Joe Biden at some point and told them a compelling story. Members of this group will introduce Obama and Biden at each of the events along the tour.