Detained Woman In Serious Condition After Train Hits Police Vehicle Parked On Tracks

A Colorado woman in police custody has been hospitalized with serious injuries after she was hit by a train while she was left inside a police vehicle parked on rail tracks near Platteville.

The 20-year-old unidentified female suspect from Greely was in the back of a Platteville police patrol car while the officers searched her vehicle on Sept.16. The woman was detained on suspicion of felony menacing, officials said, as reported by Law & Crime.

The incident happened while the cops were responding to an alleged road rage incident involving a firearm in Fort Lupton. A Platteville police deputy located the woman's vehicle on U.S. 85 and Country Road 38 after 7:30 p.m. and parked the patrol vehicle on the rail tracks behind the woman's car as she stopped just past the railroad tracks.

"Two Ft. Lupton officers arrived on the scene and the team conducted a high-risk traffic stop and detained a lone female occupant (age 20, Greeley) placing her in the back of the Platteville patrol car detained on suspicion of felony menacing. While the officers cleared the suspect vehicle as part of the investigation, a train traveling northbound struck the PPD patrol car," the Colorado Bureau of Investigation (CBI) said.

The woman was rushed to a hospital with a "significant brain injury," The Sacramento Bee reported. However, her current condition is unknown, according to reports. No officers were injured in the incident.

Meanwhile, the case will be investigated by several agencies. Fort Lupton police would be investigating the incidents that lead up to the initial call to cops, while the Colorado State Patrol (CSP) would be looking into the crash involving the train and the patrol vehicle. The CBI would investigate the "serious bodily injury to the individual while in police custody," according to reports.

As part of the routine procedure during an investigation of this kind, the officer involved was placed on administrative leave.

"The Town of Platteville is cooperatively working with CBI and CSP during their investigation regarding this incident," Platteville Police Chief Carl Dwyer said in a statement.

According to reports, there were 236 train fatalities and 668 injuries related to the rail crossings last year.