A train passenger described the scary moments the Brightline train he was on crashed into a fire truck crossing the tracks while the gates were down in Delray Beach.
The crash happened at 10:45 a.m. Saturday in crowded downtown Delray Beach. Three firefighters and a dozen passengers were injured when a fire truck with its lights flashing drove around rail crossing arms and into the path of the high-speed passenger train after waiting for another train to pass.
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WATCH HEREVideo of the collision showed the fire truck driving around cars stopped at the crossing with its lights flashing to cross the double tracks.
From the Brightline Safety and Security Team: Railroad safety is a community wide effort. For everyone’s safety, never drive around crossing gates when they are down. pic.twitter.com/6TSeHHOuyq
— Brightline (@GoBrightline) December 29, 2024
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Late Saturday evening, crews were still removing what was left of the fire truck from the tracks.
“We felt a slight break for a split second and then the violent crash after that,” said Zach Thrasher, who was on the train from Miami to Orlando. “It was very, it was very rough for everybody.”
While 12 passengers went to the hospital, others on the train felt the crash's impact.
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“It actually threw me into the table, a couple of us were banged up, but it was not gentle by any means,” Thrasher said. “Just a little bruised up but we'll be alright.”
Thrasher and his family were able to get on another train and make it home to Orlando.
“They actually handled it very well,” Thrasher said.
“We're OK, we're OK, we felt like the crew handled it well and we're all doing great,” he said.
Alek Dunn, who lives across the street, heard the loud crash and ran over to see what happened.
“I was shaken, definitely,” Dunn said. “Absolutely something I have never seen in my life.”
A Brightline safety officer said the entire community is involved in ensuring railroad safety and drivers should never go around closed gates.
The Federal Railroad Administration will investigate. A spokesperson for the National Transportation Safety Board said in the afternoon that it was still gathering information about the crash and had not decided yet whether to investigate.
