DC residents say Metro trains to blame for vibrations, noise at their homes

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People in a Northwest D.C. neighborhood are feeling vibrations inside their homes, with some blaming Metro trains for the shaking and noise.

FOX 5 spoke to multiple people in the Petworth area who said they started feeling the rumbling about six months ago.

"It definitely has been kind of a low rumble," said Brian Becker.

"At first we thought it was trucks," Carlos Vizcarra said. "It's definitely seven or eight times a day we feel it."

A family invited FOX 5 inside to experience what was happening to them. Our camera was on the floor and recording at 6 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. Tuesday when the noise started. Each time, it lasted about five seconds and the floor vibrated.

"Every time it trembles at night, I hear it and I wake up," said Louise Smith. "Sit up in the bed and say, 'Oh, that's a train running underground.'"

She said it happens on and off all night, though Smith said she hadn't noticed it was happening on the half hour. She said there has been some damage as a result.

"My pictures have slid off the wall and broke," she said "And that's something that's never happened, and I've been here 55 years."

A Metro spokeswoman provided this statement saying:

"Metro is looking into the issue. The source of reported noise/vibration has not been determined, or even confirmed as Metro related at this point."

At the nearby Georgia Ave-Petworth Metro station, FOX 5 saw that one of the new 7000-series trains came into the station at 7 p.m. Compared to older trains, the 7000-series is louder and also heavier. Metro got a shipment of those cars in May, just before people say they started hearing the noises.