JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — A man in his mid-30s was taken to a local hospital in serious condition Wednesday morning after an Amtrak train and his vehicle were involved in a Northwest Jacksonville crash, according to the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office.
JSO's Sergeant Hungerford says the crash happened around 7 a.m. in the 7200 block of Dunn Avenue when the man and driver of a 4-door Kia vehicle, drove around the crossarms that were down at the railroad track. Police say the train was travelling southbound on CXS tracks, while the Kia was traveling eastbound.
Next, Hungerford told First Coast News the Kia was dragged about a quarter-mile down the tracks, as the train sat on the railway, forcing a closure to Civic Club Drive on both sides at Moncrief-Dinsmore Road for hours. He says Civic Club Drive will reopen shortly after the Kia is moved off the railway; the train will resume on its schedule after being delayed.
The sheriff's office says the train was traveling at its travel speed of 78 mph on the railway and was carrying 10 rail cars with about 200 passengers.
The train was delayed for more than four hours while the car was pried off the tracks, eventually reaching the Jacksonville train station.
“We kept moving and moving and moving, then all of a sudden we came to an abrupt stop," said passenger Jimmy Eaches. "I heard something go ‘pop,’ and then that was it.”
Eaches and his family are looking for a winter getaway from the cold at their home in Maryland, so they took the train from DC to Orlando.
When it came to an abrupt stop around 7 a.m., he figured they were about on schedule to reach the Jacksonville station.
“People were getting ready to disboard the train," said Eaches. "It was like, ‘Let’s go, let’s go, let’s go.’ Then another guy on the train looked over and was like, ‘We’re not in any condition to board. We hit something.’”
The train was only five miles north of the Jacksonville station at the time.
“I would caution people who are driving around the tracks," said Hungerford. "It’s going to be hard to estimate the speed at which the train closes on oncoming vehicles. At 78 miles per hour, it’s going to be moving, and it’ll take that train about an eighth of a mile to stop.”
A few machines were brought in to pry the car from the tracks – delaying the train for four hours.
“It’s a miracle the man lived," said passenger Selektah Brooks. "I saw that car, it looked like you could fold it up and put it in your pocket.”
A neighbor says he’s more than familiar with long waits at the tracks.
“Constantly getting trapped in by the trains, so we’re fighting to get a crossing to go over the top of the trains," said Sam Farley.
Farley says three or four of the crossings will be shut down for more than an hour at a time some days.
After seeing what the car looked like, one passenger tells me she won’t even think about speeding through a crossing arm ever again.
“Make me want to never pass a train crossing, that’s for sure," said passenger Linda Martin. "When they took the car away, it didn’t look like anybody could survive that.”
The driver of the Kia will be issued a non-criminal moving traffic violation for going around the crossarms at the track, according to JSO.
Amtrak says the train was able to continue on its path to Miami after stopping briefly in Jacksonville.
Amtrak released the following statement to First Coast News Wednesday, hours after the crash happened:
"Today, Dec. 20, Amtrak train 91 was traveling from New York to Miami, when an occupied vehicle obstructing the track came into contact with the train. There were no reported injuries to the 181 passengers or crew members onboard. Amtrak is working with local law enforcement to investigate the incident."