UPDATE | Authorities say 13 train cars derailed

DUPONT, Wash. (AP) — Authorities say a total of 13 train cars jumped the tracks today in a deadly Amtrak derailment south of Seattle. At least six people died.

Washington State Patrol spokeswoman Brooke Bova says the train had 12 cars and two engines traveling between Tacoma and Portland, Ore.

Bova says five vehicles and two semitrailers underneath the train on Interstate 5 were hit when cars came off the tracks from above.

It wasn't clear how many train cars fell onto the road.

2:55 p.m.

DUPONT, Wash. (AP) — Hospital officials say at least two people are in critical condition and 11 others are seriously injured after a deadly train derailment outside Seattle.

Four hospitals say 50 people have been hospitalized but didn't immediately report all of their conditions. At least one person was in surgery.

There is still no exact number of people killed aboard the train.

The Amtrak train running between Tacoma and Portland, Ore., derailed south of Seattle as it was making its first run as part of a faster service that local authorities had warned could be dangerous.

The National Transportation Safety Board says it's sending a team, with the first members arriving Monday afternoon.

Board member Bella Dinn-Zarr told reporters in Washington, D.C., that it's too early to tell whether speed contributed to the accident.

12:55 p.m.

TACOMA, Wash. (AP) — An Amtrak train derailed south of Seattle on Monday, spilling train cars onto a busy interstate and authorities reported “multiple fatalities.”

The train derailed about 40 miles south of Seattle before 8 a.m.

Amtrak says there were approximately 78 passengers and five crew members on board.

Ed Troyer, a spokesman with the Pierce County Sheriff’s office, said multiple people were killed aboard the train that was heading south, but no numbers were immediately available.

The sheriff’s office said several vehicles on Interstate 5 were struck by the falling train cars and “multiple motorists” were injured on the roadways. No fatalities of motorists were reported.

All southbound lanes of I-5 were closed south of Joint Base Lewis-McChord, and motorists were being warned to avoid the area.

Chris Karnes was on the train, three or four cars back from the front.

“I’m not sure what got hit. I’m not sure what happened,” Karnes said.

He was unhurt but near the medical tents set up in a median area between north- and sound-bound I-5, just south of DuPont.

“The only car that is on the tracks is the rear locomotive. There are several cars that are hanging over the overpass,” Karnes said.

In a statement Amtrak said the train that derailed was Train 501, offering service from Seattle to Portland.

“Emergency services are on the scene and Amtrak management is responding. Some injuries are reported,” Amtrak said.