Cause of Train Crash Is Still Being Probed

Authorities on Saturday were still investigating the cause of a train crash in Somis late Friday in which an Amtrak passenger train struck a large dump truck at a crossing in Ventura County.

Both the California Highway Patrol and the Federal Railroad Administration are investigating the crash. CHP officials could not be reached Saturday. Steve Kulm, a spokesman for the railroad administration, said it would take his agency some time to complete its report.

No information about how the accident occurred has been released.

The train, which was being pushed, was traveling at 70 mph when it hit a Sands Co. Transport truck, which was carrying a load of debris from a Caltrans dump site nearby, said Dale Chessey of the state Office of Emergency Services.

A front train car that partially derailed was put back on the tracks early Saturday, and there were no service delays on the line, Amtrak spokeswoman Vernae Graham said. Earlier, however, some passengers heading to Southern California from Seattle and Northern California had to take buses for part of the trip.

Up to 20 Amtrak passengers and crew members taken to hospitals Friday night had been released by Saturday morning, officials said.

The driver and passenger of the truck, who Joe Luna of the Ventura County Fire Department said were a husband and wife, were hospitalized with serious injuries.

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Associated Press contributed to this report.