Driver Killed in Metrolink Collision

A motorist driving through a Metrolink crossing in the city of San Fernando was killed Friday when a train collided with his truck -- the third death in five days caused by a vehicle-train collision in the Los Angeles area.

The northbound commuter train, which had about 100 passengers on board, was approaching Wolfskill Street about 2:20 p.m. when it hit the truck, authorities said.

One witness said he saw the truck crash through the guardrail, which was broken and lying on the street.

“I’m not saying he went through it,” said Officer Adrian Flores, a spokesman for the San Fernando Police Department, which is looking into the incident along with the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department. “We’re still investigating.”

Two train passengers were taken to a nearby hospital with minor injuries. The train was delayed for an hour.

Authorities identified the truck’s driver as Lawrence Arthur McCluskey, 63, of North Hollywood. He was a longtime employee at a Napa Auto Parts store in San Fernando, co-workers said.

He had been driving a company-owned Chevrolet S-10 pickup on delivery runs when the accident occurred, fellow employee Elizabeth Oropeza said. He was alone in the vehicle.

Oropeza and co-worker Bill Spicer described the man as “an excellent driver” and store manager Rick De La Rosa called him “a great employee.”

The San Fernando tracks are part of an 18-mile corridor from Glendale to Sylmar that has the highest rate of collisions involving Metrolink trains.

Two other auto-train collisions this week were apparent suicides, coroner’s officials said.

On Monday, a 52-year-old man was killed when he drove into the path of a train in Glendale. The coroner’s office said a will and suicide note were found in his home.

On Thursday, another Metrolink train hit a stopped car in the City of Industry, killing a 37-year-old Walnut man.