1 dead after smoke fills D.C. Metro station

One person is dead and two are in critical condition after smoke filled a Metro station and tunnel in Washington, D.C., Monday evening. A total of 84 people have been hospitalized following the incident.

The L'Enfant Plaza Metro station and a train in a tunnel were evacuated. The cause of the smoke has not yet been determined, and it was cleared out of the station by about 5:40 p.m., a Metro spokeswoman said. The name of the woman who died has not been released yet, pending notification of family. Her death was confirmed by Metro General Manager and Chief Executive Officer Richard Sarles, who said, "There was a woman who was in distress on that train, and I'm sorry to say she's passed away."

Passenger Jonathan Rogers told The Washington Post it took about 40 minutes before firefighters got to his train, which was stopped in the tunnel. "You could see smoke coming through the doors," he said. "It started to get scary pretty quick."

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Update: At a late-night briefing, the National Transportation Safety Board blamed an "electrical arcing event" about 1,100 feet in front of the train for the smoke. The arcing involved cables that provide power to the third rail. The NTSB investigtaion is ongoing.