Metrolink train hits unoccupied car on tracks in Pacoima, police say
A Metrolink train hit an unoccupied vehicle sitting on the tracks in Pacoima early Friday, shutting down service, officials said.
The crash occurred around 11 a.m. where train tracks cross San Fernando Road at Paxton Street, Los Angeles Police Department spokesperson Jeff Lee said.
The train was carrying at least 10 passengers, and several of them complained of pain, according to Los Angeles Fire Department spokesman Nicholas Prange. Four ambulances transported seven patients with minor injuries to local hospitals “in fair to moderate condition,” LAFD officials said.
The vehicle with nobody inside was apparently sitting on the tracks in the train’s way, Prange said. The car “appeared to be mechanically disabled,” according to an LAFD news alert.
“When you hear train versus vehicle, you always picture someone trying to beat the train and driving,” Prange said. “Apparently it was not a driving situation.”
The tracks are shut down, and the 118 Freeway offramp and at least one lane of San Fernando Road have been closed to allow for emergency vehicles, according to Prange and California Highway Patrol. Several ambulances reported to the scene, most of them EMT-carrying vehicles for lower level injuries.
This is a developing story.
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