stephanie pollack: this will be a test for us to make those systems work. we' ve already planned on doing an after incident download once the storm has passed, so we can go through what worked and what didn' t work so we can get better with each subsequent storm. reid: a few other improvements to mention. tracks and a new de-icing system on the red line, very similar to the system used to de-ice airplanes will be used on the third rail and ensure that power is getting to the trains. outside the haymarket t-stop, reid lamberty, wcvb newscenter 5. erika: stay a step ahead this winter storm by tracking the weather in real time and sign up to get storm alerts on wcvb.com and our mobile apps. doug: right now. malden police searching for the driver wanted in a deadly hit and run. let' s get right to newscenter 5' s juli mcdonald who is live with new information, juli? juli: the middlesex district attorney' s office confirmed the 71-year-old woman killed in this crosswalk last night. police are looking for the driver who took off but they believe they found the da

highway administrator tom tinlin and mass dot secretary stephanie pollack say drivers should put emergency equipment in their vehicles, like jumper cables and blankets now, even though this month has been relatively mild. >> just like we are getting ready for winter, we want our drivers to. >> one of the teachable moments from last year is that mother nature may show up late to the party, but when she shows up, she means business. frank: a brand new snow melter capable of bringing the heat to 120 tons of snow and ice an hour, one of the new devices in the mass dot arsenal, expected to make a big difference when it comes to road clean-up and road safety. but here, they say, drivers using common sense are really the key. >> we ask that they stay back 200 feet and do not pass on the right. if our salt is hitting your windshield, you are too close to our equipment. and trust me, when i tell you the road conditions behind the plow is a lot better than the road conditions in front of it. frank: the focus really on drivers here today. you should clear off the snow and ice from the top of your roo

supervisor mark mcneill and lee saunders down played their quick thinking, bullet stephanie pollack says their individual skills were key. the use of all those years of experience to really think up and execute a plan in realtime. >> t officials revealed for the pfirst time how saunders got the call of the runaway train with board. >> the two raced to clear the track of any other trains. >> they told those trains to express don't stop at any more stations so they could create some spacing between the driverless train and trains with drivers and passengers on them. >> no sign of david vazquez at the state house. instead, today was all about thank yous. >> executed them perfectly. >> depolo expects to get a recommendation from the labor council today after they gather all the facts. he says sometime after that, he'll make a decision on what kind of discipline, if any, is called for. housley, 7 news. >>> patriots bouncing back from their winning streak. key players suffered injuries in houston last night. legarrette blount suffered a hip injury. affected new england's defense. in the third

. >> the reporter: we asked transportation secretary stephanie pollack about it. >> one of the issues that we can look at in the investigation is should we have communicated with the broader public in a different way. >> the incident started at 6:09 a.m., i got a call about 6:15 a.m. >> the reporter: mbta general manager tells you he called braintree's mayor right away but that release didn't go out to the public for hours. >> of course, we had to determine what actually had happened. >> the reporter: and pollack tells us she is waiting for a full port on the investigation. that's expected out within a week or two. we'll keep following this story for you have. live outside the state transportation building in boston, sharman sachetti, fox 25 news. >> vanessa: a jury of eight men and four women is now deciding the fate of a accused teen killer, phillip chism. of raping and murdering his danvers high school math old. chism is being tried as an adult. fox 25's bob ward has been covering this trial from the very beginning. he brings us inside the courtroom now, following an arguments. >>

secretary of transportation stephanie pollack told fox 25 looking into reports that the

transportation secretary stephanie pollack says wedging or restricting the position of prohibited act. if it happened, it would subject the operator to termination. the mbta had to cut power to the third rail to stop that train. none of those passengers on board was hurt. stay with us though as we continue to learn more about this hearing. live in boston, julie mcdonald, wcvb, newscenter 5. emily: investigators are searching for answers after a deadly fire in worcester, the flames broke out around 8:00 last night on burncoat street. fire officials say an elderly man in his sister died in the by the time firefighters got to the house, most of the damage had already been done. we're still waiting to learn the names of the victims. erika: right now a 90-year-old man is in the hospital after being hit by a car in revere. it happened on malden street just after 7:00 last night. we're told the victim has serious injuries. the driver of the car stayed on the scene and was also taken to the hospital. emily: new questions about the screening process that allowed one of the san bernardino shoot

. >> the reporter: well, mark, i asked transportation secretary stephanie pollack about these passengers' reports about a cord being wrapped around what they believed was an accelerator in the cab of this operator and she said it's all part of a very active investigation. an investigation she says that focuses specifically and primarily on operator error. and we know tonight, that it was a nightmare commute for about 50 passengers on the redline. take a look at this video. sources tell me, 28 years, mbta veteran david vasquez was the operator of this train. pollack would not confirm his identity, but she told reporters the operator could not start the train this morning. because of a signal issue. and put it into what's been called bypass mode, what is called bypass mode and then that operator stepped off the train. both sets of brakes on the train vasquez sustained minor none of the passengers on the train were hurt. transit police tell fox 25 the inbound train went four stops from brain free to north quincy without this operator on board. mbta engineers had to deactivate the third rail

now, secretary stephanie pollack would not confirm his identity, but told reporters that the operator could not start the train this morning because of a signal issue. then, they put that train into bypass mode and that operator actually was able to stop off of the train. now, both sets of brakes appeared to have not been engaged at the time and the train took off without this operator. injuries. none of its passengers hurt. secretary pollack called the there is a two layer system so that this kind of thing does hand happen, but there are concerns tonight about the single operator system on the redline train. this switchover happening back in 2011. 2011. redline trains in the past operate with two operators, but they have been operating safely with only one operator, as have our blue line trains, as have trains throughout the united states of america. if state procedures are followed properly, there is no safety problem with operating trains with a single operator. >> now, some passengers told us they believe the train was actually speeding at the time of this incident. and pollack sa