At Least Six Dead in NY Commuter Train Crash

Moscow (PNA/Sputnik) — Six people have been confirmed dead in an accident involving a Metro-North commuter train and at least one vehicle in Valhalla, New York.

At least a dozen others were injured.

The train was heading northbound from New York City when it struck a Jeep at a crossing at about 6:30 p.m., pushing the car about 150 yards up the track, officials said.

The driver of the Jeep, a woman, was standing outside of the car and was killed, an MTA spokesman told NBC New York. The other five fatalities were passengers on the train.

The Jeep was stopped on the tracks when the railroad crossing gates came down on top of it, according to an MTA spokesman. The driver got out to look at the back of the car, then got back in and drove forward when she was struck.

Numerous police and fire departments are responding to the crash, which they are calling a “mass-casualty” incident.

The crash caused an explosion which set both the car and train on fire. The third rail also pierced the train but reportedly did not hit any passenger.

The commuter train was reportedly carrying more than 750 passengers. Unharmed passengers evacuated the train through the rear car and were taken to a nearby sports club, where they boarded a bus and resumed their commute.

Service has been temporarily suspended between North White Plains and Pleasantville on the Harlem line of New York’s Metro-North commuter railroad. (PNA/Sputnik) FPV/SSC