NTSB: Amtrak 501 traveling at 78 mph just before derailment

The engineer on board Amtrak Cascades 501 remarked that the train seemed to be moving too fast six seconds before it left its tracks and dumped cars onto Interstate 5 on Monday morning.

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The final recorded speed from the train before it crashed at a highway overpass close to Dupont was 78 mph. The overpass and the downhill curve located just north of it, was part of a 30 mph stretch of track owned by Sound Transit.

On Friday, the National Transportation Safety Board released a few initial conclusions after reviewing information gathered from the train's data recorder and footage from inward-and outward-facing cameras on the train that captured crew's conversations and actions.

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The data was downloaded and processed at the NTSB's lab in Washington, D.C. The agency cautioned that preliminary findings are subject to change.

According to the data, crew members were not observed using any personal electronic devices just prior to the crash. The engineer did appear to apply the locomotive's brakes, but did not appear to apply emergency brakes. That confirms an earlier finding that the train's emergency brake was automatically activated rather than initiated by an engineer.

The footage ended as the locomotive tilted and crew braced for impact.

People work at the curve leading to the railroad bridge where an Amtrak train derailed onto Interstate 5 two days earlier Wednesday, Dec. 20, 2017, in DuPont, Wash. The Amtrak train that careened off the overpass south of Seattle, killing at least three people, was hurtling 50 mph over the speed limit when it jumped the track, federal investigators say, when it derailed along a curve, spilling railcars onto the highway below. (AP Photo/Elaine Thompson)
Elaine Thompson/AP

Vehicles fill the highway at the scene of an Amtrak train crash onto Interstate 5 from the railroad bridge above two days earlier Wednesday, Dec. 20, 2017, in DuPont, Wash. The Amtrak train that careened off the overpass south of Seattle, killing at least three people, was hurtling 50 mph over the speed limit when it jumped the track, federal investigators say, when it derailed along a curve, spilling railcars onto the highway below. (AP Photo/Elaine Thompson)
Elaine Thompson/AP

The engine from an Amtrak train that crashed onto Interstate 5 on Monday, is transported away from the scene, Wednesday, Dec. 20, 2017, in DuPont, Wash. Federal investigators in the deadly train wreck want to know whether the engineer was distracted by a second person in his cab as his train hurtled into a curve at more than twice the speed limit. The train took a 30 mph curve at 80 mph and plunged off an overpass, sending rail cars plummeting onto a busy highway south of Seattle. (AP Photo/Elaine Thompson)
Elaine Thompson/AP

The engine from an Amtrak train crash onto Interstate 5 two on Monday, sits on a transport carrier before being driven away from the scene, Wednesday, Dec. 20, 2017, in DuPont, Wash. Federal investigators in the deadly train wreck want to know whether the engineer was distracted by a second person in his cab as his train hurtled into a curve at more than twice the speed limit. The train took a 30 mph curve at 80 mph and plunged off an overpass, sending rail cars plummeting onto a busy highway south of Seattle. (AP Photo/Elaine Thompson)
Elaine Thompson/AP

State Patrol officers and workers gather before transporting the engine from an Amtrak train crash two days earlier away from the scene, Wednesday, Dec. 20, 2017, in DuPont, Wash. Federal investigators in the deadly train wreck want to know whether the engineer was distracted by a second person in his cab as his train hurtled into a curve at more than twice the speed limit. The train took a 30 mph curve at 80 mph and plunged off an overpass, sending rail cars plummeting onto a busy highway south of Seattle. (AP Photo/Elaine Thompson)
Elaine Thompson/AP

The engine from an Amtrak train crash onto Interstate 5 on Monday, is checked by workers before being transported away from the scene, Wednesday, Dec. 20, 2017, in DuPont, Wash. Federal investigators in the deadly train wreck want to know whether the engineer was distracted by a second person in his cab as his train hurtled into a curve at more than twice the speed limit. The train took a 30 mph curve at 80 mph and plunged off an overpass, sending rail cars plummeting onto a busy highway south of Seattle. (AP Photo/Elaine Thompson)
Elaine Thompson/AP

The engine from an Amtrak train crash onto Interstate 5 two days earlier is checked by workers before being transported away from the scene, Wednesday, Dec. 20, 2017, in DuPont, Wash. The Amtrak train that careened off the overpass south of Seattle, killing at least three people, was hurtling 50 mph over the speed limit when it jumped the track, federal investigators say. (AP Photo/Elaine Thompson)
Elaine Thompson/AP

A damaged Amtrak passenger train car is lifted from the tracks at the site of the derailment of an Amtrak train in Dupont, Wash., Tuesday, Dec. 19, 2017. Investigators are looking into whether the Amtrak engineer whose speeding train plunged off an overpass on Monday, killing several people, was distracted by the presence of an employee-in-training next to him in the locomotive, a federal official said Tuesday. (Thomas James/Pool via AP)
Thomas James/AP

A damaged Amtrak passenger train car sits on a flatbed truck after being lifted from the tracks at the site of the derailment of an Amtrak train in Dupont, Wash., Tuesday, Dec. 19, 2017. Investigators are looking into whether the Amtrak engineer whose speeding train plunged off an overpass on Monday, killing several people, was distracted by the presence of an employee-in-training next to him in the locomotive, a federal official said Tuesday. (Thomas James/Pool via AP)
Thomas James/AP

Workers examine a damaged bridge section at the site of the derailment of an Amtrak train in Dupont, Wash., Tuesday, Dec. 19, 2017. Investigators are looking into whether the Amtrak engineer whose speeding train plunged off an overpass on Monday, killing several people, was distracted by the presence of an employee-in-training next to him in the locomotive, a federal official said Tuesday. (Thomas James/Pool via AP)
Thomas James/AP

Washington Gov. Jay Inslee, right, talks with Washington State Patrol Chief John Batiste after they spoke to media members near the scene of an Amtrak train crash onto Interstate 5 a day earlier Tuesday, Dec. 19, 2017, in DuPont, Wash. Federal investigators say they don't yet know why the Amtrak train was traveling 50 mph over the speed limit when it derailed Monday south of Seattle. (AP Photo/Elaine Thompson)
Elaine Thompson/AP

A damaged train car sits on a flatbed trailer at left as work continues to remove other cars at the scene of an Amtrak train crash onto Interstate 5 a day earlier Tuesday, Dec. 19, 2017, in DuPont, Wash. Federal investigators say they don't yet know why the train was traveling 50 mph over the speed limit when it derailed Monday, killing some people and injuring dozens. (AP Photo/Elaine Thompson)
Elaine Thompson/AP

A damaged train car sits on a flatbed trailer after being removed from the scene of Monday's deadly Amtrak train crash onto Interstate 5 as northbound traffic passes nearby Tuesday, Dec. 19, 2017, in DuPont, Wash. Federal investigators say they don't yet know why the Amtrak train was traveling 50 mph over the speed limit when it derailed Monday south of Seattle. (AP Photo/Elaine Thompson)
Elaine Thompson/AP

An investigator takes photos off a railroad bridge at the scene of where an Amtrak train derailed above Interstate 5, Monday, Dec. 18, 2017, in DuPont, Wash. The Amtrak train making the first-ever run along a faster new route hurtled off the overpass Monday near Tacoma and spilled some of its cars onto the highway below, killing several people, authorities said. (AP Photo/Elaine Thompson)
Elaine Thompson/AP

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Train data recorders are like black boxes on airplanes, yielding information on whether the brakes were applied or warnings were given to crew members. NTSB investigators were reportedly looking into whether the engineer was distracted approaching the curve.

The NTSB expects to release a preliminary report detailing the facts and circumstances of the crash in coming days. A full report is expected in 12-24 months.

Eighty passengers and five crew members were on board the train's 12 cars and two engines when it derailed. Of the 14 total cars, 13 jumped the tracks at the crossing. Three victims -- James Hamre, 61, of Puyallup, Zack Willhoite, 35, of Spanaway, and Benjamin Gran, 40, of Auburn -- were killed. Dozens were wounded and transported to local hospitals.

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The Portland-bound train from Seattle was the inaugural run on the new Point Defiance Bypass route that took the passenger trains inland between Tacoma and Olympia to speed up travel time.

The Washington state Department of Transportation, which co-owns the Amtrak Cascades system with the Oregon DOT, began work in 2010 to plan the bypass along an existing route that was used by Sound Transit for its Sounder commuter trains. Amtrak operates the service as a contractor.

Locals in Lakewood and DuPont had voiced concerns all along about high-speed rail traffic coming through ground-level crossings where cars or people could risk being in a train's path. At one point, Lakewood and DuPont sued the state to try and block the new route, but the case was dismissed.

SeattlePI reporters Lynsi Burton and Daniel DeMay contributed to this story. Reporter Stephen Cohen can be reached at 206-448-8313 or stephencohen@seattlepi.com. Follow Stephen on Twitter at @scohenPI.