Three people, including a child, died Sunday evening when a Metra train heading toward downtown Chicago struck a vehicle in the city's Beverly neighborhood, authorities said.
Train 122, operating on the transit agency's Rock Island Line, collided with an SUV before 5:30 p.m. in the 10300 block of South Vincennes Avenue. A total of 41 passengers were onboard, and several injuries were reported, authorities said.
One engineer sustained a leg injury, and a conductor was injured to her back, according to Michael Gillis, a spokesman with Metra. Three passengers were injured, and two were transported to the hospital.
The train departed Joliet at 4:25 p.m. and was scheduled to arrive at Chicago's LaSalle Street station at 5:25 p.m. When the collision occurred, the train was operating as an express train to downtown, traveling at approximately 79 miles per hour, according to the transit agency.
Feeling out of the loop? We'll catch you up on the Chicago news you need to know. Sign up for the weekly Chicago Catch-Up newsletter here.
Inbound and outbound train movement was initially halted near 103rd Street following the collision, Metra tweeted. Trains were experiencing delays several hours after the crash.
Metra always tries to reinforce railroad safety, Gillis said, however the circumstances surrounding the incident remained unclear late Sunday evening.
Local
"There’s no indication the gates were malfunctioning," he told reporters at a news briefing. "But I don’t know, I can’t say at this point what happened at the intersection."
Metra officials were planning to view footage captured by a camera onboard the train in hope of learning what led up to the collision.
