A railroad crossing in Nassau County turned into a chaotic disaster scene on Tuesday night when two Long Island Rail Road trains traveling in opposite directions struck a car that had swerved around lowered gates and onto the tracks, killing three people. The rush-hour collision occurred near the Westbury station, about 30 miles east of Manhattan, setting off fires that terrified passengers before they could escape. The authorities said that at least seven people on the trains were injured; the three people who were killed were in the car. After the driver of the vehicle went around the gates, an eastbound train pulling out of the station struck the car, according to Phillip Eng, the president of the railroad. Another train, traveling westbound, then crashed into the vehicle and pushed it down the tracks before the front two cars of the train derailed and collided with the concrete platform.

Source: New York Times February 27, 2019 02:24 UTC