Westbury LIRR Accident: 3 Dead After Trains Strike Truck On Tracks

UPDATE: 11.50 p.m. EST- According to reports, not one but two LIRR trains struck the truck. The eastbound train first made contact with the truck, pushing it to the westbound track where the other train hit the vehicle again. A total of 1,000 passengers and crew were on board both the trains and at least seven passengers suffered injuries, including a 15-year-old boy.

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo called for a probe into the accident. "As we continue to gather information surrounding the incident, my heart goes out to the victims and their loved ones. In the wake of this tragedy, I am calling for a full investigation into the collision, including with the complete cooperation of the MTA, State Police, local law enforcement and the NTSB," Cuomo said in a statement.

Original report below:

A Long Island Rail Road train struck a truck on the tracks in Westbury, New York, Tuesday night, killing three.

The accident took place at the School Street crossing around 7:30 p.m. EST. The train was en route to Penn Station from Ronkonkomaen.

Service on the Ronkonkoma and Huntington/Port Jefferson branches were suspended and passengers were asked to take alternative branches including Babylon, Hempstead or Montauk.

Nassau County Police Commissioner Patrick Ryder said the truck tried beating the train by going around the gate. All the occupants in the vehicle were declared dead on the spot, WCBS 880 reported.

The train also partially derailed and hit a concrete platform.

“The train then leaves the track and takes out the platform and then hits the north side of the platform and takes off about 30 yards of concrete, which goes through the train," Ryder said, News Day reported.

Around 200 passengers were in the train at the time of the accident and some of them suffered injuries. They were taken to local hospitals. Police and emergency personnel were at the scene of the accident.

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

“That’s when it got real. I’m still shaken up. You don’t know. You think you might die. I’m thinking to myself ‘It might be my last day,’” she added.