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Safety Board Cites Failures On LA's Angels Flight

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Federal safety investigators say operators of the historic Angels Flight funicular railway in downtown Los Angeles intentionally overrode a safety system before two cars derailed last month.

The National Transportation Safety Board issued an urgent recommendation Thursday that a series of safety issues be addressed before the reopening of the short railway.

No one was hurt Sept. 5 in what was the latest accident on "the shortest railway in the world," though six people had to be helped from the line's two cars.

In its report, the NTSB said the railway's operators had broken off a tree branch and used it to permanently depress a button so that the cars would restart during unintended stops. These stops, a sign of problems on the line, were happening regularly before the accident.

RELATED STORY: Angels Flight Railcar Jumps Tracks In Downtown LA

(© Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

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