4 die as train hits car

Witnesses said the automobile's driver ignored crossing warnings.

By ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published July 17, 2007

Firefighters examine a car that collided with an Amtrak train Monday afternoon in Lakeland.
	[AP Photo]

LAKELAND - Four people were killed Monday afternoon in an apparent race with an eastbound Amtrak passenger train in an industrial section of West Lakeland.

The driver of a maroon Pontiac ignored flashing lights at a railroad crossing on Wabash Avenue and even maneuvered past a stopped car to get around a cross-arm that was in the down position, according to witnesses and a surveillance camera at the nearby Publix complex.

Police released few details, saying only that piecing together the information would take time. They would not provide any of the victims' names.

At least one of the occupants was ejected from the car after impact, said Lakeland police spokesman Jack Gillen.

Relatives identified Brian Guy, 24, of Lakeland as one of the dead. By all accounts the others were young women, all from the same community near the accident site.

Several witnesses said they watched as the fast-moving passenger train slammed into the car with enough force to send it airborne at least 20 feet before hitting the ground about 30 or 40 yards east of the rail crossing.

"When it hit, all I saw was a great big ball of dirt; it was horrendous," said Mike Boyd, 29, who watched from his front porch. "They thought they could beat it. I knew it was too late."

Near the intersection, Sanquinitta Johnson, 30, took a moment to gaze from her window at Iron Horse Automotive, where she works as a secretary, only to spy a maroon car attempt to sneak through the crossing. "I was amazed," she said.

The train was headed for New York with 161 passengers. None were injured and the train continued on about two hours later. It had stopped in Tampa.

[Last modified July 17, 2007, 01:18:08]