JACKSON, Miss. -AP- [1]An Amtrak passenger train collided with a garbage truck Tuesday on a rural stretch of central Mississippi track, injuring at least seven people, authorities said.Three of those taken to hospitals were Amtrak employees who suffered non-life-threatening injuries, Amtrak spokesman Marc Magliari said. He did not know the status of the others hurt, or whether they were train passengers, truck passengers or both.
A fire broke out after the collision, authorities said, damaging the engine. The train’s final car, which was empty, left the track.
Oh, I can’t wait for the final report on this one. CN owns the track through there, and I’m willing to bet that there’s nothing more than a set of crossbucks marking the crossing. Everyone involved with this one got very lucky, indeed.
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Meanwhile [2] we have a pedestrian getting hit by an express train at the Attleboro commuter rail station. Not many details are availble on this one, but the guy lived long enough to make it to an area hospital. Track speed in the area is 150mph. No, that’s not a typo… trains on the NorthEast corridor often run that fast… but the track is usually very well marked and fenced. What this guy was doing in that position, I’ve no idea, but it does sound unliekly that we’re dealing with an accident.