Overview
- Wildfires along the Clay–Putnam county line, which triggered track closures Monday, forced Amtrak to halt or cut back major routes including the Silver Meteor, the Floridian, and the Auto Train.
- Train 98, stopped north of DeLand on Sunday, reversed course and returned to Miami on Monday night with 232 passengers after more than a day of delays, with riders reporting limited food and overflowing toilets and one medical assist on board.
- Amtrak said affected customers will get full refunds and travel vouchers, with limited bus service used in parts of the corridor to get some passengers between Miami and Jacksonville.
- Fire officials report two main blazes — the 1,700-acre Crews Road Fire in Clay County with 0% containment and the 1,000-acre Railroad Complex Fire in Putnam County at about 5% — together covering roughly 2,700 to 3,000 acres.
- Clay County officials say sparks from a train likely started one of the fires, and the National Weather Service warns gusty winds and low humidity could slow containment and delay full rail service restoration.