Helicopter crashes on train tracks near Baltimore-Washington Airport

A helicopter crashed on rail tracks near Baltimore/Washington International Airport on Saturday, sparking a brush fire and delaying Amtrak train service along a major passenger route, officials said.

The crash, which injured three on board, resulted in delays to Amtrak service between Baltimore and Washington, D.C., according to the railroad's statements and social media posts.

An Amtrak spokeswoman said that by mid-afternoon all service had resumed between the two cities. Airline operations were not affected, airport spokeswoman Whitney Kidd said.

The helicopter was flying at low altitude around a power line when it crashed a mile north of the Maryland airport, near Amtrak's BWI Station, the Federal Aviation Administration and Anne Arundel County police said.

The helicopter, operated by a private contractor conducting a land survey for an electric company, was destroyed in the crash, said Ariel Jackson, a lieutenant at the Anne Arundel County Fire Department.

Three people on board were transported to the hospital with injuries that were not life-threatening, Jackson said. No one else was hurt, the FAA and police said.

Lieutenant Ryan Frashure, a spokesman for the Anne Arundel County Police Department, said firefighters were on the scene of the crash, which was reported just before 1 p.m. on the major passenger train corridor linking Washington and other northeastern cities.