"I don't know if power has been cut off...I have a serious head injury."

There are no time stamps so it's hard to tell how long it took for the firefighters to report that the crash involved two trains, that it was above ground, that it was very serious. There are several calls before the mass casualty units are requested.

(Via the amazing STATter 911)

Video of the response after the jump.

Here's video:

WUSA Reporter Dave Statter notes that most of the injuries came from the older metro train car.

"They have been getting hate-filled telephone messages about whether or not Fernandez, a mother of six, was a legal immigrant.

Her family gathered outside her Hyattsville apartment Wednesday. A crying woman who identified herself as Ana's sister said the accusations aren't true.

'Right now, the whole family is in pain. She was here legally, and all her children are legal. They were born here.'

She says she's grateful for the genuine expressions of sympathy, but has a message for the people who have been making the harassing calls.

'We all work, OK? And we're going to get through this.'"

WTOP reporter Kate Ryan writes in to Loose Lips with more details of the hate calls:

"Ana Fernandez' family tells me specifically that the calls accuse them of 'using the crash' to gain legal status for Ana. Again, the woman identifying herself as Ana's sister (and Ana's daughter Evelyn) tell me that not only was Ana legal, but that all six kids were born here."

Fernandez's family had been the focus of a lot of official sympathy. Yesterday, Councilmember Jim Graham, who is the chairman of the Metro Board, said he had her family in mind when he pushed for a $250,000 emergency relief fund.

(Via DCist)

Other things are happening beyond the Red Line, of course.  Read about them after the jump.

• James von Brunn, the crazy old man who shot and killed a security guard at the US Holocaust Memorial Museum two weeks ago, was released from George Washington University Hospital where he was recovering from retaliatory gunshot wounds.  Prosecutors say he is too weak to appear in court but hope for an appearance early next week.
• President Obama had a busy day.  He spent the early part of the afternoon holding a press conference and condemning Iran's elections while still trying to garner support for universal health care.  Then, to prove he is the coolest dad in the nation, he hung out with Nick Jonas from the Jonas Brothers.  The two met with a group of diabetic children in order to raise support for diabetes research, but the reason was probably lost on Sasha and Malia.  Because when Dad hangs out with your celebrity crush, you don't really care why.
• The governor of South Carolina is going to work tomorrow.  After leaving his office on Thursday afternoon, Mark Stanford disappeared in his SUV and supposedly went hiking along the Appalachian Trail.  People got concerned after not hearing from him for 5 days and when Sanford realized that his "vacation" had become a missing persons case, he decided to come home.
• And finally, DCist is reporting that WaPo humorist Gene Weingarten has taken the buyout.  During an online chat today, he admitted that the Post had offered to rehire him on contract but he'd rather write books and movies.  After winning a Pulitzer, there's not much left to achieve in daily journalism.

Confirms nine fatalities, the final count. "As a government and as a city" there are only four people whose identities have been confirmed.

Three of the four are residents of the District of Columbia. One lived in Hyattsville. Fenty contacted three of the four families personally. Says can't imagine the "horror and disbelief" of the families.

Fire department has completed its work as the lead agency. Debbie Hersman and the NTSB will now become the lead agency in this matter. Fenty thanks the feds for making all kinds of resources available.

Next up at the mic is D.C. fire Chief Dennis Rubin. He says that fire and EMS and various agencies have done an "absolutely incredible job" of doing their thing. Highlights---timeline begins at 5 pm, had units on location within six minutes. "Obvious this was going to be a major national event." Then they did coordination with inbound agencies. First injury person was transported 21 minutes later; last person was transported 6 hours and 51 minutes later.

Command was transferred at 1 pm. Fifty-one people that fire department treated.

"We've been busy," says Rubin, noting that there've been other fire events over this period.

Rubin, on an editorial comment here, handles himself pretty well in these moments. He has stumbled in a lot of ways since taking over the fire department but does well in front of the press.

Fenty back at the mic, saying that a grand total of eight of the nine fatalities have been identified. Two of them were David F. Wherley, Jr., former commanding general, Joint Force Headquarters, District of Columbia National Guard, and his wife Ann. Fenty said of David F. Wherley: "As fine a public servant, dedicated to the United States of America" as you'll ever find. Military is in "complete shock," says Fenty.

Now it's Metro General Manager John B. Catoe on the spot: He's saying mostly procedural stuff, talking about handing over all information to NTSB and thanking fire department for quick response. Not much here.

Now it's Jim Graham, talking about the 2 pm meeting today. He's saying there'll be another meeting Thursday. First specific action is that there's an amergency hardship relief fund and dedicated $250,000 to the kitty. It's for responding to immediate human needs. Graham says that it's not about a settlement. Will be "refining" this matter in the coming days. Also, statement: We are aggressively seeking to replace the 1000-series rail cars, which were purchased between 1974 and 1978. Also calling on the feds to make good on the commitment of $150 million per year for capital expenditures. Capital needs remain substantial, high hopes that in FY '10 budget the feds keep up funding.

Up now is Debbie Hersman, who has been easily the most interesting and informative speaker at these events. Hersman expresses condolences, sends out prayers to those who remain hospitalized. Nineteen NTSB personnel are on the case trying to determine what caused the accident.

Hersman now going into some thank-you moments for other instrumentalities that have been doing a "great job" and so on. Standard bureaucratic stuff here.

Teams have been out today collecting evidence. Summary of the work here: Track group, working closely with FBI, checking locations of the track, equipment, damage to the equipment. They're seeking an outline of what the crash looked like.

Hersman says the crash occurred on a curve, not a straightaway. It's a one-degree curve. Track speed limited to 59 mph. Feds are working to determine exact point of derailment. Once they're able to move the trains, they may be able to determine exact location of derailment.

Team is working to preserve records and collect perishable evidence. Majority of our team has been out on scene putting information together. Will need time to go through those records. Operation of the train---documentation of some of the control surfaces....now she's talking about stuff that I have no idea about, something about a dial, toggle switch in the on position. All relates to whether it was in automatic mode or manual mode---OK, I get that.

Toggle switch, dial and master controller confirm to NTSB that the train was in automatic mode. Hersman addresses braking issues---emergency mushroom was found in a depressed condition---it was pressed in. The "mushroom" she's talking about here must be the little switchy thing that hits the emergency brake.

Have conducted some interviews and Metro's ops center about the striking train's operator. The original hire date was January of '07. Was hired as a bus driver. She started training as a train operator in January '09 and started driving in March '09.

Hersman is going to be seeking all kinds of documents on the operator's employment history as well as the "72-hour history," to see whether the operator had sufficient rest-work balance. Will be looking for those records. Toxicology samples have been taken on the train operator and have been sent off for analysis.

Standing train---looking to see if there is usable data on the recorders. Pulling apart the married pair of the trains. WMATA is going to bring in a flatbed to pull stuff apart.

Striking train---Train 112---they're looking at the lead car, which sustained extensive damage. Fifty feet of the 75 feet in that car were lost to the accident. That is, two-thirds of the survivable space was gone because of the impact.

Cars and their age: Average age of Metro fleet is 19.3 years old. How compare to other transit operations: Metro ranks 6th among 15 transit agencies in terms of car age. 1000-series cars comprise 300 cars of Metro's 1115-car fleet.

Now she's going into all the other series, and I've totally lost her. 192, 50000, 2 million, whatever. We'll get those details later.

Accident sequence: There was a train at Ft. Totten. Were servicing the platform. The struck train was waiting on the tracks as a result. The striking train---there was a report that there was an announcement that there was a train ahead and then the striking train started again. Looking into that, says Hersman.

Know that the community is anxious to get service back. Track is safe.

Hersman appreciates support from city and other people too. Including Sal Army, which has helped with water and stuff. Also appreciates people in the neighborhood. Look forward to wrapping up this part of the investigation.

Now taking questions:

Question is about trains reported two months past due on brake service.

Hersman has seen reports to that effect and will review records. Interested in looking at those records, but interested in looking at all of those records. Just in first 24 hours of investigation.

Question: What implications of the aging of the fleet has to the rest of the system.

Hersman says agency has no position on that. Will work closely with WMATA if NTSB finds something that is an acute safety problem.

Question: Is the location of the fatalities and whether they were in the striking or struck car.

Hersman says it's premature to comment on that.

Question: NTSB's request for texting records and the like.

Hersman says hard to say. Not really sure exactly what the point is on this question, though Hersman is saying that operators of vehicles and the like should not be texting or talking on cell phones and the like.

Question: Missed it.

Hersman is responding to the question, but I don't know what the question was, so can't really figure out what to type here.

Question: What OCC might have seen displayed about the location and position of the trains in the system.

Hersman says hasn't gotten with her people on this just yet. Says they will provide additional factual information when it's available.

Fenty now back in front, celebrating the accomplishments of the first responders to this calamity. Talks about the "heroic job" of all these responders. Fenty is not so great in situations like this. Nor is he terrible. He just doesn't project the image of a feeling person. A bit robotic. He gets all the information out there, so that's good. He covers all the bases like a good mayor, including crediting the front-line workers and nodding to the feds and other agencies that have assisted.

HOWEVER: When it comes to shifting to a higher civic and emotional gear, Fenty just doesn't have the equipment to go there.

The Washington Times picked up what may become an emerging angle from the Metro Crash---the tensions between WMATA and the D.C. Fire Department. Fire Chief Dennis Rubin basically called out WMATA for initially downplaying the extent of the crash. The Times writes:

"Fire officials stated bluntly Monday night that Metro's original description of the accident understated its magnitude, and it was only when the first rescuers arrived at the scene that the sort of help needed was finally summoned.

'A little after five o'clock we responded to what was believed to be a small incident,' D.C. Fire Chief Dennis L. Rubin said. 'The first arriving company recognized the fact that apparently two trains had collided.' Fire officials eventually sounded three alarms, summoning hundreds of rescuers and implementing their mass- casualty operations."

It's unclear whether rescue work was delayed as a result or whether WMATA or 911 dispatchers made errors in communicating the severity of the crash. "[The Office of Unified Communications] is not under our purview," explains Deputy Fire Chief Kenneth Crosswhite. "We're not responsible for OUC....I would be curious to hear what the first 911 call was reporting."

Fire Department Spokesperson Alan Etter refused to say when the department sounded three alarms and summoned all those rescue workers. "It was an evolving event---resources were called as they were needed," he stated in an e-mail to City Desk. "In other words, nobody jumped up and said---this is a third alarm incident---at the height of involvement we had an equivalent of three alarms on scene---more than 200 personnel--with mutual aid, etc."

The department's own notification records point to such a response. It's unclear whether or not that response was timely.

At 5:23 p.m., the Fire Department issued what may have been its first notification noting the Metro train derailment and that it was "above ground, train involved."

At 5:40 p.m., a second notification came out describing that one train was on top of another. It listed the staging area for emergency personnel at 2nd and Nicholson.

At 5:41 p.m., a third notification was sent out noting that the command center had been established to support the emergency efforts. All off-duty battalion chiefs were to call in placed on standby.

At 5:54 p.m., a fourth notification was sent out announcing that different radio channels had been established for the rescue.

Crosswhite says the scene was not chaotic, adding that the department has two mass casualty units that responded. He is not sure if they were on the scene when he arrived at 5:30 p.m. "I really don't know," he explains. "I seem to think they were already there---I want to say in the staging area."

Crosswhite ended up driving an ambulance.

Rubin responded to the Washington Post's questions on the WMATA issue this afternoon:

"Firefighters on their way to the Metro crash site yesterday they were unaware that there was a horrific fatal collision and thought they were responding to a 'small incident,' D.C. Fire Chief Dennis L. Rubin told The Post's Allison Klein.

They initially were dispatched to the two Metro stations -- Takoma Park and Ft. Totten -- before they located the mile marker of the crash. But responders got to the scene within six minutes, Rubin said, and 'performed in an exceptional way.'

'The instant we laid eyes on it, this was declared a major operation,' Rubin said.

At Fenty's press conference just after 5 p.m. today, Rubin says Fire Department responded quickly to disaster.

*photo by Darrow Montgomery.

"The Metro train car that slammed into another on the Red Line yesterday evening was two months past due for scheduled maintenance on its brakes, and the car was an older model that federal officials had recommended be replaced because of concerns about its safety in a crash, officials said today....

According to a Metro source knowledgeable about railcar maintenance, the first car of the striking train was two months behind on a scheduled maintenance for changing out brakes and brake components."

The identities of some of the dead have also been identified. According to WTOP's account:

"Metro has identified them as: 59-year-old Mary Doolittle of Northwest D.C.; 40-year-old Ana Fernandez of Hyattsville; 64-year-old Dennis Hawkins of Southeast D.C.; 23-year-old Lavanda King of Northeast D.C. and 42-year-old Jeanice McMillan of Springfield, Va., the operator of one of the trains involved in the collision.

Metro spokeswoman Candace Smith says four bodies were recovered from the wreckage Monday after the rush-hour crash. Five more were removed Tuesday.

The crash sent 76 people to hospitals. Metro officials said two men and seven women, all adults, were killed."

So how did the Red Line metro crash death toll jump to nine last night then fall back to seven this morning and then back up to nine? Last night, City Desk reported that three news outlets---WUSA9, WTOP, and WJLA---had confirmed that nine had died in the crash. WTOP cited the D.C. Fire Department as its source. WJLA had cited Metro.

This morning, Fenty stated that the number of confirmed dead was actually seven. That number soon increased back up to nine.

At least one fire department official is trying to figure out how and why there was so much confusion. One reporter City Desk contacted speculates that it may have to do with just the gruesomeness of the scene.

Deputy Fire Chief Kenneth Crosswhite says the death toll should not have gone up to nine last night. "I don't know how that number got out there," he says. "I'm very disappointed. We had no idea that there was nine. I called the command post and said, 'Are we at nine?' They said, 'No, we're at six.'... [They said] we have not recovered any more bodies."

Crosswhite is trying figure out who leaked the increased death toll last night. "Maybe you could help me out," he says. "Where should I look? I talked to Metro's PIO and I talked to NTSB, their PIO. I don't know where that number came from. If you find out please let me know so it doesn't happen again."

The Fire Department's own spokesperson, Alan Etter, says he isn't the source for last night's number. "I didn't talk to anyone at all last night," he says. "Nor did I get any new information---they might have talked to someone at the scene."

Dave Statter, the runs the STATter 911 blog and is a reporter with WUSA, says it may have come down to body parts. "My impression is that last night's information which came from sources around 11:20 PM was based on what the camera saw or parts of bodies being seen," Statter says via e-mail. "They had not gotten to those bodies in time for the 8:00AM press conference so the official count was left at 7. After the press conference access was made and five bodies came out bring the official toll to 9."

Councilmember Jim Graham appears to side with Statter for an explanation on the confusing death toll numbers. "I think it has to do with the way the car was crushed," he says. "There was a lot of uncertainty about what was in that crash. That's just pure guess work on my part having been on the scene."

Graham says he plans on asking about the death toll issue at this afternoon's Metro Board hearing on yesterday's crash.

*photo by Darrow Montgomery

"The number of people killed in last night's deadly Red Line crash has risen to nine, Metro's general manager said this morning, shortly after five bodies were removed from the mangled wreckage...

Several of the dead were crushed, their bodies not located until a crane removed part of the striking train this morning."

Last night, three local news outlets had reported that nine had been confirmed dead. The news orgs had cited the fire department and Metro as sources. [The Fire Department refused to confirm that number late last night when City Desk called]. The Washington Post would only say the death toll was expected to rise to nine.

New Columbia Heights notes that Wonderland's owner has no desire to cash in and allow Real World d-bags to infiltrate his bar with drama, cameras.

Carlos in DC is mad at D.C. Police for stopping and detaining a woman for selling food on the street:

"While I agree the police was trying to enforce the law, but the officers in charge were totally ignorant with people -including me- who tried to help the Spanish-speaking woman with translation into English. The two policewomen were extremely rude and threatened anyone who tried to help."

Borderstan wants to know why Dupont Circle was completely cleared for a half hour on Sunday.

And Now, Anacostia notes that historic district signs are up in SE:

"Not sure why these didn't go up years ago, but I'm happy to report that the Anacostia Historic District is finally marked with signs. It's nice to have some physical reminders of the district's boundaries, but also emphasizes our need to expand in certain areas to include some of the neighborhood's more fragile homes and commercial buildings."

"9NEWS NOW has confirmed there are nine dead from the collision, and officials say there are 67 people injured. The Fire Department Chief said that up to six of those people sustained life-threatening injuries, another 14 have less threatening injuries and more than 50 people have what officials call 'walking injuries.'"

WTOP confirms nine dead.

The New York Times has President Obama's statement on the crash:

“Michelle and I were saddened by the terrible accident in Northeast Washington, D.C., today. Our thoughts and prayers go out to the families and friends affected by this tragedy. I want to thank the brave first responders who arrived immediately to save lives. My staff has been in touch with Mayor Fenty’s office and will continue to monitor the situation.”

As of midnight, both the Times and the Washington Post have yet to report on the increased fatalities.

WJLA now confirms that nine passengers have died. Its source: Metro.

"The official death toll rose to nine from six about 11:30 p.m., Metro confirmed.

Crews will remain on the scene overnight, using cutting tools and the jaws of life to disentangle and separate the twisted cars which were ripped open and smashed together by the force of the collision."

Just after midnight, City Desk contacted D.C. Fire Department Deputy Chief Kenneth Crosswhite who says he called the command post regarding the death toll. He says the death toll is still listed at six. "They are still at six," Crosswhite says. "I don't know where they are coming up with that number."

Are they still going through the crash? Crosswhite says rescue workers are still going through the crash site. "They are still going through the process just verifying and checking out the train, making sure their are no patients now. I don't know where they're at. I was on the track, looked at the crash site."

Crosswhite was at the scene earlier, he says one of the big problems was the huge hill that lead to the tracks: "Gaining access to the injured to the scene there, the topography of the land is not the best. They had to cut the fence away, and use a ladder to make steps....They searched the area around to make sure nobody wandered along the track bed. They checked the area out."

That area included the nearby woods. Crosswhite says he ended up being tasked to drive the ambulance to transport two of the injured to a waiting helicopter.

"I had to drive the ambulance carrying the two [most severely injured] to the helicopter, to the land site at New Hampshire and Peabody." There was nobody at that moment available to drive the ambulance, he explains.

"When was the last time I drove an ambulance? Wow. Wow. Probably 10-15 years ago," Crosswhite. "I can drive them. I can even drive a ladder truck and a fire engine. They were very severely injured. The original landing site was on the bridge."

Here's one commenter from the washingtonpost.com on the matter:

How is the Washington Post being scooped about a potentially serious metro rail collision? This happened about 45 minutes ago, and it's still in little print at the bottom of the Post web page. Come on guys. Surely you haven't all taken the buy out?

Comes this dispatch, via Dr. Gridlock:

A Red Line Metrorail train derailed at 5:10 p.m. approaching Fort Totten in the Shady Grove-bound side. Trains are turning back at Brookland and Takoma....Metro says that shuttle bus service has been requested to bridge the gap between Takoma and Brookland.

There are reports of injuries. Developing.

UPDATE, 5:35 P.M.: This seems quite a bit worse than a minor derailment. WJLA-TV reports:

Metro confirms two trains have collided on the Red Line between the Takoma and Fort Totten stations. It happened close to the Fort Totten station, a Metro spokesperson said.

D.C. Fire and EMS spokesman Alan Etter said one train was on top of the other train.

This is "developing into a mass casualty event," Etter said. "We're expecting a number of injuries. We're not aware of any fatalities at this point."

Update, 5:46 p.m.: ABC News/News Channel 8 is reporting one fatality. Reporter Brad Bell saw the fatality being taken from the accident scene. At least nine people injured. The fatality appears to be a male. Many passengers still stuck inside metro cars. Fire Department spokesman Alan Etter confirms one dead on WTOP.

Here is the official Metro alert:

"Metro reports that 2 train collided and one train is on top of the other train.  Metro reports massive injuries at this time. The green line and the red line are affected. Further information to follow."

It looks like the accident ocurred just beyond the Fort Totten stop.

5:54 p.m. Update WTOP is reporting that the derailment took place between Fort Totten and Takoma Park:

"The six-car train was heading toward Shady Grove when it derailed and then collided with another train around 5 p.m. Monday near the Maryland-D.C. border."

Metro Official: Passengers still being evacuated from trains.

6:02 p.m. Update: NBC4 reports the collusion occurred above ground, many more injuries:

"Officials have confirmed one fatality. There are numerous other injuries. Passengers trapped in the trains have been using tools to cut themselves from the wreckage.

A witness told Bensen that it appeared that one train car looked like it was on top of another train car.

Trains are not traveling between the Brookland and Fort Totten stations. Shuttle service is being established, but Metro spokeswoman Cathy Asato advised riders to completely avoid the Red Line this afternoon and evening.

Trains are operating between Glenmont and Brookland and between Shady Grove and Brookland stations and from Glenmont to Takoma Metrorail stations for the remainder of the day."

6:06 p.m. Update: Two confirmed dead.

6:11 p.m. Update News Channel 8 reporter re: Witness: One car sheared another car in half. Now with Metro Official: At 5:05 p.m. two trains collided, not sure if dead is Metro employee, rescue workers still getting people off trains. Fire Department has to cut through train to get passengers out.

Front car sheered off.

6:18 p.m. Update: Washington Hospital Center may get most of the victims.

ABC/News Channel 8 reports:

"ABC 7's Brad Bell reports seeing several people with what appear to be broken limbs. He also has seen ambulances lined up."

Witness: Nine serious injuries--internal injuries. Fire Chief Dennis Rubin and D.C. Police Chief Cathy Lanier on the scene. Many people were able to walk off the tracks.

6:28 p.m. Update: TV news channel 8 reporting rescues may have been completed. Rescue workers now working on passengers. Civilians working on passengers, performing first aid. Good point: Mass Transit in need of funds.

6:30 p.m. Update: Two students appeared to have broken legs.

6:40 p.m. Update: Another picture, this one from channel 9 via Twitter:

6:41 Update: MOCO ambulances and emergency vehicles are coming on the scene.

6:43 p.m. Update: WCP  is reporting from the scene.

6:45 p.m. Update: From WJLA: People are still on the train. A bad sign: Medical Examiner is coming on the scene. Doors of train jammed requiring emergency personnel.

6:46 p.m. Update: Via twitter: One resident reports getting a warning regarding Metro Trains just before crash:

"Got a DC alert at 4:42 about mechanical issues and trains sharing a track. Crash didn't happen yet. Foreshadow?"

Correction: It was at 4:39 p.m. between Tenleytown and Van Ness. It was for mechanical problems.

6:56 p.m. Update: U.S. Park Police helicopter used to evacuate victim. One of the two dead was a driver on one of the trains from NBC-4.

Mayor Fenty to hold press conference at 7 p.m.

7:03 p.m. Update: WMATA has issued a press release:

"Two six-car Red Line trains collided at 5 p.m. today, Monday, June 22, resulting in two fatalities, including a female train operator. There were also several injuries, many serious, according preliminary reports.

Metro officials advise that people avoid the Red Line the remainder of the day. Trains are operating between Glenmont and Silver Spring Metrorail stations and between Shady Grove and Rhode Island Avenue Metrorail stations for the remainder of the day. (Please note that this is a change in locations.)

Shuttle buses are operating between Silver Spring and Rhode Island Avenue Metrorail stations to help customers get around the incident.

Emergency officials remain at the scene.

'We are extremely saddened that there are fatalities as a result of this accident, which has touched our Metro family. We hope to have more details about the casualties later today. Our safety officials are investigating, and will continue to investigate until we determine why this happened and what must be done to ensure it never happens again,' Metro General Manager John Catoe said."

7:06 Update: Fenty press conference moved to 7:15 p.m.

7:08 Update: More than a 100 injured re: NBC-4. A bus with 24 "walking wounded" en route to George Washington University Hospital.

7:09 Update: Fenty press conference begins: "We are cooperating fully with WMATA," Fenty states. Fire Chief Dennis Rubin about to speak. "A little bit after 5 o'clock we responded," Rubin says. Called in fire departments from surrounding counties. Treated 70 patients including two with life-threatening injuries.

Four dead. Including one female train operator. This is the deadliest accident in Metro history. There was a previous crash in 2005 which caused scores of injuries. Two metro workers were killed in a 2006 crash. Wiki has a good rundown of previous accidents.

You can follow the liveblog of the press conference.

Officials still searching train for casualties.

7:19 Update: Fenty tries to end press conference. Official: If you are trying to find a loved one please call: 202-727-9099. Do not go to the scene.

7:24 p.m. Update: Chief Rubin says this was a three-alarm emergency that involved 200 rescue workers.

7:30 p.m. Update: Our own Mike DeBonis is reporting that the train that got hit had been stopped for 10 minutes. We will have a full report from our man on the scene soon.

7:32 p.m. Update: David Corn is taking some pictures of the crash:

Here is another from Corn:

7:37 p.m. Update: WMATA updates its press release:

"Two six-car Red Line trains collided at 5 p.m. today, Monday, June 22, resulting in four fatalities, including a female train operator. There were also several injuries, many serious, according preliminary reports.

Metro officials advise that people avoid the Red Line the remainder of the day. Trains are operating between Glenmont and Silver Spring Metrorail stations and between Shady Grove and Rhode Island Avenue Metrorail stations for the remainder of the day. (Please note that this is a change in locations.)

Shuttle buses are operating between Silver Spring and Rhode Island Avenue Metrorail stations to help customers get around the incident.

Emergency officials remain at the scene. Metro officials are also working with the National Transportation Safety Board."

7:40 p.m. Update: From DeBonis: Reporters have been moved off the scene. They've been moved 100 yards from crash site.

7:45 p.m. Update: Scores of rescue workers lined up along 2nd Street: NBC-4. Read WTOP's story here. WJLA updates its story as well. WMATA updates its press release.

7:58 p.m. Update: Two traumas are at G.W. The bulk of the victims are there via NBC-4.

Unofficial count of dead now 7--WUSA. Then there's this unconfirmed account via Twitter.

8:07 p.m. Update:From the Washington Post's report updated roughly 15 minutes ago:

"No details were available about the cause of the crash, the third time in the last 15 years involving the collision of two Metro trains. The last was in November 2004, when a Red Line train rolled backwards down a steep stretch of track, and smashed into another train at the Woodley Park station. Twenty people were injured in that crash.

'There will obviously be a very thorough investigation into what caused this derailment,' Metro spokeswoman Farbstein said of today's crash. She said there were 'many serious injuries' and that passengers were being taken to hospitals. 'Our hearts are with the families of those who have passed,' she said"

8:12 p.m. Update: WJLA reporting six dead:

"A Metro train slammed into the back of a stopped train on the Red Line during the height of rush hour Monday afternoon, killing six people and injuring more than 60 others in the deadliest crash in the transit agency's 33-year history. ABC 7 News confirmed there were at least six fatalities in the crash, including a train operator. Officials have only cofirmed four."

8:17 p.m. Update Fire Department via Twitter reports transporting 42 injured.

8:27 p.m. Update: Fenty is back before the cameras. He confirms six dead. But he cautions that is a "working number."

Rubin hails heroic efforts of D.C. fire fighters. Two fire fighters sustained minor injuries. Lanier says a "reunification center" has been set up. Call 311 if you are looking for a loved one. We are reporting out the press conference in full.

8:36 p.m. Update: WaPo finally updates its story to include the six dead.

8:56 p.m. Update: New number to call if you are looking for loved ones: 202-737-4404.

9:05 p.m. Update: Councilmember Jim Graham: Car "leapfrogged" other car. Lack of info regarding crash is due to the state of the cars. 76 injured.

9:07 p.m. Update: DeBonis reads through old NTSB reports regarding previous Metro crashes---issues of the car construction could be at play here.

9:12 p.m. Update: Check out our pictures from the crash site.

10:32 p.m. Update: This from unsuckdcmetro: "Just got a tweet from WMATA. "disruption cleared" FAIL #wmata"

11:30 p.m. Update: Darrow Montgomery posts some photos that capture the aftermath of the crash; Lanier, etc. look stressed out.

11:35 p.m Update: NBC-4 reporting that rescue workers are still looking for people in the twisted wreckage.

11: 45 p.m. Nine confirmed dead.

---By Mike DeBonis and Jason Cherkis

*photo courtesy of Channel 9 News, WNBC-4