Train survivor: 'I was on TV for all the wrong reasons'
N.Y. restaurateur Jeremy Wladis reflects on his sudden celebrity.
JEREMY WLADIS says he'll ride Amtrak again next week, assuming that rail service between Washington and New York resumes by then.
Wladis, 51, of New York, president of a restaurant group, was in the last car when Amtrak Train 188 derailed Tuesday night in Frankford, killing eight passengers and injuring more than 200.
He said he returned to work yesterday, after spending Wednesday being interviewed by about 25 news organizations, including CNN and Fox News.
"I was on TV for all the wrong reasons," he said of his sudden celebrity. "All the wrong reasons."
Wladis knows he is fortunate to be contemplating a return to his normal routine, which includes a train trip to D.C. about once a week.
"It's sad and I feel terrible for the victims' families and the people who got really hurt, but, you know, life goes on," he told the Daily News yesterday. "I'll be back on the train next week."
Wladis acknowledged that traveling by train through the area where the crash occurred won't be easy. "I'm sure I'll be thinking about it, but what are you gonna do?" he said. "I still think it's one of the safest ways to travel."
Wladis and business associate Daniel Wetrin, who was sitting near him when the train derailed, were back in Manhattan by 3 a.m. Wednesday, less than six hours after the crash, courtesy of Uber, which refunded their fare, Wladis said. But their thoughts remained in Philadelphia.
Wetrin said "there was an excitement" Wednesday to having survived unscathed, as he followed news reports and responded to interview requests. "Today I feel really sad," he said.
Wetrin, 37, said that he, too, intends to return to the train without trepidation.
"The likelihood of another derailment is so remote," Wetrin said. "You'd be more likely to win the lottery."
Wetrin has a memory from before the crash that he just can't shake: A young man in Navy dress whites, who first sat in their car, then moved. From news photos he has seen, Wetrin believes the young man was Naval Academy Midshipman Justin Zemser, who was among those killed.
Wetrin said he would like Zemser's family to know what an impression he made, how squared-away he looked. "A really neat, well-presented guy," Wetrin said.
Wladis said that when he tried to walk around a little just before the crash, he had a sense that the train was going a bit fast.
"I just figured these guys are professionals, they know what they're doing," he said of the train's crew.
The NTSB has said that Train 188 was traveling 106 mph as it approached a curve and slowed only to 102 mph before leaving the rails.
Wetrin said he feels bad for engineer Brandon Bostian. Wetrin noted that the speed limit was 80 just before the curve, where it slowed to 50.
"I'm sure all over the network, drivers are speeding, all the time, everywhere," he said. "That driver didn't want to crash the train."
Wetrin said he considers Bostian "culpable," along with Amtrak and Congress, for not making sure the Positive Train Control system was installed.
"People are desperate to find a scapegoat," he said.