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Railroad Regulators Issue Emergency Cell Phone Ban

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Oct 3, 2008 1:58 am US/Pacific

Railroad Regulators Issue Emergency Cell Phone Ban

LOS ANGELES (AP) ― Federal railroad regulators have issued an emergency order banning use of cell phones and other electronic devices by rail workers.

The move came one day after investigators said Metrolink engineer Robert Sanchez was text messaging moments before a crash last month that left 25 people dead.

Violators could be fined or removed from their jobs under the Federal Railroad Administration rule.

Experts say preliminary evidence released yesterday by the NTSB on the timing of the messages appears to rule out that he was unconscious at the time and could show that Sanchez, who was among the dead, was distracted at the time of the crash.

NTSB investigators have found no indication of mechanical error, signal malfunction or problems with the track.

(© 2009 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)

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