A backhoe clears soil next to a derailed Metro-North train car, foreground, Monday, Dec. 2, 2013 in the Bronx borough of New York. In back is a car that had been derailed but was lifted back to the tracks. (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan)
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The Metro-North train engineer involved in Sunday's deadly derailment was in a daze and distracted moments before the accident, multiple sources told the New York Daily News.
Investigators reportedly described Engineer William Rockefeller Jr. as "consciously asleep."
"It seemed like he lost his concentration or focus," one law enforcement official told the Daily News.
A backhoe clears soil next to a derailed Metro-North train car, foreground, Monday, Dec. 2, 2013 in the Bronx borough of New York. In back is a car that had been derailed but was lifted back to the tracks. (AP/Mark Lennihan)
"[He] lost his concentration or focus," another added.
[sharequote align="center"]"[He] lost his concentration or focus"[/sharequote]
The man had no recollection of the moments leading up to the accident, according to one investigator speaking to the Daily News.
Before the deadly derailment, the Metro-North train bound for New York City was traveling 82 mph in a 30-mph zone — 52 mph over the speed limit.
Investigators say the brakes appeared to be working fine and mechanical errors aren't suspected of being the cause.
The derailment claimed four lives and injured dozens.
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