ST. STEPHEN, S.C. – An investigation is underway to determine the cause of a recent crash involving a van and Amtrak train in St. Stephen.
According to an Amtrak spokesperson, on Thursday, Amtrak train #90 was traveling from Savannah, Ga. to New York City around 10 a.m. when a van on the track was struck by the train at the Roosevelt Drive crossing, 40 miles north of Charleston.
“There have been no reported injuries to the 79 passengers or crew onboard. Amtrak is working with local law enforcement to investigate the incident,” Amtrak spokesperson Kelly Just told The Berkeley Observer in an email.
Jennifer Keller Easler said she and her husband were eating breakfast at Lowcountry Coffee Company when the crash happened.
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“We were sitting inside the coffee shop and heard the train just blasting the horn. Then we heard the crash,” Easler said. “A piece of the van’s suspension flew through the front glass door and settled at the ice cream counter.”
“It delayed the train for a while. We left at 11:30 a.m., and the train was still there,” she continued.
The St. Stephen Police Department, Berkeley County Sheriff’s Office, Berkeley County Emergency Medical Services, CSX and North Berkeley Fire District responded to the scene of the collision.
The injuries of the van’s driver are unknown. However, a video of the crash posted to YouTube shows paramedics transporting a man, who appears to be alert, on a stretcher into an ambulance. The train’s impact crushed the sides of the van and forced its back doors to swing open.
“One of his tires had gone down the street in one direction and the back of the van hit someone’s truck in the other direction,” Easler said.
According to the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA), railroad crossing incidents are the second leading cause of rail-related deaths in the USA.
Just said these incidents serve as a critical reminder about the importance of exercising extreme caution around railroad tracks and crossings. Amtrak said it works closely with Operation Lifesaver (OLI) to emphasize the dangers of being on railroad property or disregarding warnings at rail crossings.
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