WESTBURY, N.Y. — New York's Long Island Rail Road predicts "heavy delays" all day following the crash of a car and two commuter trains that claimed three lives.

Nassau County Police Commissioner Patrick Ryder says the vehicle's driver was "trying to beat" the crossing gate when it was struck just before 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday in Westbury.

Ryder says one of the trains, which was carrying about 200 passengers and headed for Manhattan, was going at "full speed" when it crashed.

Three people in the car were killed. Seven people on the westbound train suffered minor injuries.

The LIRR says its crews have been working on two derailed train cars and "significant" track damage. They've also been assessing damage to the station platform. </s> WESTBURY, N.Y. — The Latest on the deadly crash of two Long Island Rail Road trains and a car that went around lowered crossing gates (all times local):

New York's Long Island Rail Road predicts "heavy delays" all day following the crash of a car and two commuter trains that claimed three lives.

A National Transportation Safety Board spokesman said Wednesday that the circumstances of the crash, though tragic, don't point to any safety issues that require its investigation.

Nassau County Police Commissioner Patrick Ryder says the vehicle's driver was "trying to beat" the crossing gate when it was struck just before 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday in Westbury.

An eastbound train that had just pulled away from the station hit the car first. It was then struck again by a faster-moving westbound train.

Three people in the car were killed and seven people on the westbound train suffered minor injuries.

New York's Long Island Rail Road predicts "heavy delays" all day following the crash of a car and two commuter trains that claimed three lives.

Nassau County Police Commissioner Patrick Ryder says the vehicle's driver was "trying to beat" the crossing gate when it was struck just before 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday in Westbury.

Ryder says one of the trains, which was carrying about 200 passengers and headed for Manhattan, was going at "full speed" when it crashed.

Three people in the car were killed. Seven people on the westbound train suffered minor injuries.

The LIRR says its crews have been working on two derailed train cars and "significant" track damage. They've also been assessing damage to the station platform.

Nassau County Police Commissioner Patrick Ryder says the vehicle's driver was "trying to beat" the crossing gate when it was struck just before 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday in Westbury.

Ryder says one of the trains, which was carrying about 200 passengers and headed for Manhattan, was going at "full speed" when it crashed.

Three people in the car were killed. Seven people on the westbound train suffered minor injuries.

The LIRR says its crews have been working on two derailed train cars and "significant" track damage. They've also been assessing damage to the station platform. </s> The Latest: Witness says car in train crash was fleeing

WESTBURY, N.Y. (AP) — The Latest on the deadly crash of two Long Island Rail Road trains and a car that went around lowered crossing gates (all times local):

A witness has told police that the driver who caused a deadly wreck by trying to go around a lowered railroad gate on Long Island in New York was fleeing the scene of an earlier crash.

The car was hit by two commuter trains and burst into flames Tuesday night in Westbury. Three people in the vehicle died and eight people on one of the trains suffered injuries, three of them seriously.

Police have not yet confirmed the alleged earlier crash.

The Long Island Rail Road has provided limited service as railroad employees work to remove the damaged train cars and repair the tracks.

New York's Long Island Rail Road predicts "heavy delays" all day following the crash of a car and two commuter trains that claimed three lives.

A National Transportation Safety Board spokesman said Wednesday that the circumstances of the crash, though tragic, don't point to any safety issues that require its investigation.

Nassau County Police Commissioner Patrick Ryder says the vehicle's driver was "trying to beat" the crossing gate when it was struck just before 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday in Westbury.

An eastbound train that had just pulled away from the station hit the car first. It was then struck again by a faster-moving westbound train.

Three people in the car were killed and seven people on the westbound train suffered minor injuries.

New York's Long Island Rail Road predicts "heavy delays" all day following the crash of a car and two commuter trains that claimed three lives.

Nassau County Police Commissioner Patrick Ryder says the vehicle's driver was "trying to beat" the crossing gate when it was struck just before 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday in Westbury.

Ryder says one of the trains, which was carrying about 200 passengers and headed for Manhattan, was going at "full speed" when it crashed.

Three people in the car were killed. Seven people on the westbound train suffered minor injuries.

The LIRR says its crews have been working on two derailed train cars and "significant" track damage. They've also been assessing damage to the station platform. </s> WESTBURY, N.Y. — Three people were killed and nine injured when a vehicle was struck Tuesday by two Long Island Rail Road trains going in opposite directions, according to MTA Long Island Rail Road president Phillip Eng.

The vehicle reportedly drove around railroad crossing gates in Westbury, New York, Eng said. The three dead were in the vehicle, Eng said, and the injured included seven train passengers, a conductor, and an engineer.

The injured were transported to area hospitals with minor injuries, Eng said.

“This is a … very tragic cautionary tale that you just don’t try to beat the train. It’s not, it’s not going to work,” Nassau County Executive Laura Curran said.

The first strike came from an eastbound train leaving the Westbury station and carrying about 100 people, Eng said.

Then a westbound train, traveling at a higher speed and carrying about 800 people, struck the vehicle. According to Eng, the front two train cars of that train derailed and struck the platform at Westbury station.

About 200 feet of track has been damaged, along with the third rail, and the Westbury platform, Eng said.

“We’re gonna work through the night and we’re gonna work to restore service as soon as possible,” Eng said, adding that he expected morning service to be impacted. </s> Three people were killed in New York on Tuesday night when a Manhattan-bound train struck a car that was on the tracks, officials said.

The vehicle was "trying to beat the gate" at an intersection in Westbury around 7:30 p.m., according to Nassau County police.

The Long Island Rail Road train hit the vehicle, killing all three people inside, officials said. Several passengers on the commuter train suffered minor injuries.

The transit agency said the train was scheduled to arrive at Penn Station in New York City from Ronkonkoma at 7:56 p.m.

Service was suspended in both directions on the Ronkonkoma and Huntington/Port Jefferson branches.

The Associated Press contributed to this report. </s> A car "trying to beat the gate" was struck by two trains going opposite directions in Long Island Tuesday night, killing all passengers in the car, police said.

Seven passengers on the trains were hospitalized, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said.

Just before 7:30 p.m., a car allegedly drove around railroad crossing gates in Westbury, MTA Long Island Rail Road president Phillip Eng told CNN. It was hit by an eastbound train first and then a westbound train. At least one train was traveling at "full speed," according to Nassau County police, and derailed. About 900 passengers were traveling on the trains involved.

The crash ignited fires, and caused significant damage to a concrete platform and rail.

"This is a ... very tragic cautionary tale that you just don't try to beat the train. It's not going to work," Nassau County Executive Laura Curran told CNN.

The vehicle and the vehicle's passengers couldn't immediately be identified.

Cuomo called for a full investigation of the incident. Wednesday, Long Island Rail Road was operating with limited service. </s> WESTBURY, N.Y. — A witness told police that the driver who caused a deadly crash by trying to go around a lowered railroad gate on New York’s Long Island was fleeing the scene of an earlier crash, a police official said Wednesday.

“The witness said that individual was involved in an accident and went around the gate,” Nassau County Police Commissioner Patrick Ryder said.

The car was hit by two commuter trains and burst into flames Tuesday, killing the driver and two passengers, Ryder said.

The Long Island Rail Road provided limited service on Wednesday as railroad employees worked to remove the damaged train cars and repair the tracks.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo called for a “full investigation into the collision,” which also forced the evacuation of nearly 1,000 passengers and crew members on the two trains.

Police said an eastbound train that had just pulled away from the Westbury station struck the car at 7:20 p.m. The car was then struck again by a faster-moving westbound train. The three people in the car were killed and eight people on the westbound train were injured, three of them seriously, officials said.

The crash was the fifth incident at the same crossing in 40 years and the second involving a train hitting a vehicle, according to federal safety data. In the others, a person walking or standing on the tracks was hit by a train.

County Executive Laura Curran, who joined Ryder and other officials at a news conference, said the crash shows how foolish it is to drive around the gate.

“I cannot repeat this enough,” Curran said. “Please do not try to beat the train. Nothing is so important.”

The westbound train derailed after hitting the car and crashed into the concrete platform, sending chunks of concrete and rebar into the front car of the train.

“It was completely destroyed, the front cab,” Ryder said.

Ryder said the engineer and a passenger in the front car survived by running backward through the car before it hit the platform. He said emergency workers rescued the two from the mangled train car.

Dr. Anthony Boutin, head of the emergency department at Nassau University Medical Center, said three people were hospitalized with serious injuries and are expected to completely recover. The other crash victims were treated for minor injuries. </s> Three people have been killed after a Long Island Rail Road train rammed into a truck in Nassau County in New York state, according to local media reports.

The three victims were all occupants of the truck, and no one on the train was injured, officials told CBS New York.

The truck had attempted to run through the crossing gates, ABC 7 reported.

READ MORE: 3 CP Railway employees from Calgary killed in major train derailment near Field, B.C.

Long Island Rail Road said service was suspended on several lines as emergency crews responded at the scene. </s> TribLIVE's Daily and Weekly email newsletters deliver the news you want and information you need, right to your inbox.

WESTBURY, N.Y. — New York’s Long Island Rail Road predicts “heavy delays” all day on Wednesday following the deadly crash of two commuter trains into a car that had driven around lowered crossing gates and onto the tracks.

An eastbound train that had just pulled away from the Westbury station struck the car at 7:20 p.m. Tuesday, police said. The car was then struck again by a faster-moving westbound train. Three people in the car were killed and seven people on the westbound train suffered minor injuries.

Gov. Andrew Cuomo called for a “full investigation into the collision,” which also forced the evacuation of nearly 1,000 passengers and crew on the two trains.

LIRR President Phillip Eng said the crossing gates and lights were functioning properly.

The railroad said heavy delays are expected as its crews work on two derailed train cars and “significant” track damage, and assess damage to the station platform.

Passenger Kiara Jackson told Newsday she heard the sound of metal dragging along the concrete platform.

“I knew something was wrong. We were in a panic,” Jackson said. “There was a screech and then there was a thud. They told us to walk westerly and there were two small fires. Smoke was kind of coming in so they told us to just keep walking.”

Another passenger, April Frazier, 31, of Brooklyn, was heading to Manhattan’s Penn Station.

“I was sitting on the left side and all of a sudden the train really started rocking hard,” Frazier told Newsday. “Flames flared up on my side. I heard the conductor yell ‘Brake, brake!’ That’s when I saw the flames.”

Chris O’Neil, chief spokesman for the National Transportation Safety Board, said that the circumstances of the crash, though tragic, don’t point to any safety issues that require further investigation or new recommendations by the agency.

Tuesday’s crash was the fifth incident at the crossing in 40 years, and the second involving a train hitting a vehicle, according to federal safety data. In the others, a person walking or standing on the tracks was hit by a train.

As part of the LIRR’s expansion and modernization project, the railroad’s “A Modern LI” website said it planned to eliminate that grade crossing, saying it “poses a safety risk to drivers, pedestrians and LIRR customers,” and replace it with a “two-way grade separated underpass.”

After a spike in deaths at railroad crossings in 2017, the U.S. Department of Transportation launched a public awareness campaign with the slogan “Stop! Trains Can’t.” The Federal Railroad Administration developed a crossing-finder app and persuaded technology companies to add grade-crossing warnings to GPS devices and mapping applications.

In 2017, there were 2,115 grade-crossing crashes in the U.S., resulting in 271 deaths. That was the highest yearly grade-crossing death toll in a decade (2008 had 290). Full-year data isn’t yet available for 2018.
Two Long Island Rail Road trains collide into a car in Westbury, New York, United States, killing all three occupants in the car.