Passenger train and truck collide near Menton, Missouri. Three people have been killed in an Amtrak train crash from Los Angeles to Chicago, local officials say. At least 50 people were injured.
The train collided with a truck near the town of Menton at 1:42 pm local time, transportation company Amtrak said in a statement. As a result of the incident, two engines and eight carriages fell off the tracks.
Company officials previously said 243 people and 12 employees were traveling on the train at the time of the crash. State Road Safety spokesman Justin Dunn said authorities are still trying to determine the death toll.
Missouri train crash
According to The Kansas City Star, the train passengers were students from Pleasant Ridge High School in Easton, Kansas. They were on their way to Chicago for the “Future Leaders of America” Conference. During an evening press conference, Missouri Road Patrol spokesman Justin Dunn said three people were killed and at least 50 were injured. – Authorities are still trying to find the exact number of dead. Two of the dead were on the train and the third on the truck, Dunn told CNN.
Scouts helped the wounded
He also quotes one of the passengers who came out unscathed in the Robert Nightingale crash. – Everything was in slow motion. The train began to jump. (…) Some helped others get out – said the man. Two U.S. Boy Scouts were injured in the crash, according to CNN’s Director of Boy Scouts of America National Media. He said the other boys from the two hosts were helping the injured. This is the second accident in which an Amtrak train collided with a car in two days. Three were killed and at least two were injured in what became known as the Cold War on Sunday. All of the victims were in the vehicle.
Main photo source: Reuters