Local
Two Men Killed When Jeep Crosses Lowered Railroad Gates in Corsicana
A gray Jeep reportedly drove around downed crossing arms on West 12th Avenue late Tuesday and was struck by a Union Pacific train, killing both occupants at the scene. Police and the railroad are investigating.
Two men died Tuesday night after the Jeep they were riding in apparently bypassed lowered railroad crossing gates and was hit by an oncoming train in Corsicana, according to the Corsicana Police Department.
The collision happened shortly after 10:30 p.m. in the 300 block of West 12th Avenue, police said. The men were heading west in a gray Jeep when the crash occurred.
When officers reached the scene, they found the Jeep resting in a ditch on the south side of West 12th Avenue. Both occupants were pronounced dead at the location, authorities said.
The Corsicana Police Department and Union Pacific Railroad are jointly investigating the incident. Officials have not yet released the names or ages of the two men.
Investigators are asking anyone with information about the crash to call the Corsicana Police Department at (903) 654-4902.
Tuesday's deaths add to a persistent pattern of fatalities at grade crossings, where drivers sometimes attempt to beat trains despite active warning signals. Federal regulators have long urged motorists never to go around lowered gates, noting that a train can take more than a mile to stop even when emergency brakes are applied.
Corsicana, the seat of Navarro County about 55 miles south of Dallas, sits along a busy Union Pacific corridor, and local officials have previously fielded complaints about crossing safety and blocked intersections. The circumstances of Tuesday's crash remain under review, and no further details were immediately available.