HOUSE RESOLUTION NO. 2018-4662, by Representatives Muri, Kilduff, Holy, Klippert, Morris, Orwall, Sawyer, Stambaugh, Ryu, Barkis, McDonald, Dye, Dent, Kraft, Macri, Wylie, Johnson, Van Werven, and Reeves

WHEREAS, On December 18, 2017, Amtrak train No. 501 derailed near DuPont in southern Pierce County at 7:33 a.m. on its inaugural trip of the new stretch of track known as the Point Defiance bypass, with seventy-seven passengers and six crew on board; and

WHEREAS, Second Lieutenant Robert McCoy, an Army medic, was driving on Interstate 5 just as the train derailed and without thought to his welfare, immediately jumped out of his truck and began carrying the wounded out of harm's way and off the road to safety, and then climbed into a suspended train car to help those trapped inside; and

WHEREAS, Eagle Scout Daniel Konzelman and Alicia Hoverson, also came upon the scene just after the derailment and quickly helped extricate passengers from the damaged train and were a calming presence to the injured; and

WHEREAS, DuPont Mayor Mike Courts and his team just happened to be at City Hall that morning to begin a planned emergency training, and began coordination of the emergency response, opening up City Hall for emergency workers, taking in those affected, providing food, water, and triage services; and

WHEREAS, Many other pedestrians, police officers, firefighters, nurses, and doctors jumped into action to help those in need; and

WHEREAS, Governor Jay Inslee immediately declared a state of emergency, activated the State Emergency Operations Center to coordinate resources to support state and local officials, and mobilized the state National Guard to help as needed; and

WHEREAS, Pierce County Executive Bruce Dammeier and the Pierce County Incident Management Team (IMT), led by Captain Jerry Lawrence from the Pierce County Sheriff's Department and Captain Scott Engle of Puyallup Police, spearheaded a multiagency response; and

WHEREAS, West Pierce Fire District, Joint Base Lewis-McChord, the City of DuPont, the Pierce County Medical Examiner, the Governor's Office, the Washington State Department of Transportation, the State Patrol, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the National Transportation Safety Board, Amtrak, the Red Cross, and other agencies showed exemplary coordination to help the injured and address the myriad of issues of a catastrophe of this magnitude with remarkable effectiveness and sensitivity to the injured and their families; and

WHEREAS, Madigan Army Medical Center at Joint Base Lewis-McChord, St. Peter Hospital in Olympia, Harborview Medical Center in Seattle, St. Joseph Medical Center in Tacoma, Good Samaritan Hospital in Puyallup, and Allenmore Hospital in Tacoma all treated victims of the train crash; and

WHEREAS, Joint Base Lewis-McChord quickly opened up its facility to the general public to accommodate traffic from the impassable southbound lanes of I-5;

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, That the Washington State House of Representatives hereby honors the men and women who acted so promptly, efficiently, and effectively in a time of extraordinary confusion and emotional stress to aid the injured and their families and console those who lost loved ones; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That copies of this resolution be immediately transmitted by the Chief Clerk of the House of Representatives to those mentioned in this resolution.