Update: Driver Drove Around Gates at Train Crossing

By FOX 47 News

CREATED Feb. 17, 2012 - UPDATED: Feb. 17, 2012

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  • Eaton County sheriffs deputies responded to an accident near Creyts Road Thursday night that killed the driver of the car and stranded over a hundred passengers going from Chicago to Port Huron. Video by fox47news.com

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Eaton County sheriffs deputies responded last night to an accident between a passenger train and a car. It happened around 9:30p.m. in Delta Townshio at Millett Highway and Lansing Road.
 
That Amtrak train was carrying more than 100 people, going from Chicago to Port Huron.
 
The driver of the car was killed, according to scanner traffic, an appears to have been the only person in the vehicle.
 
We are working to get more information, and will bring that as soon as possible.

UPDATE

DELTA TWP - The driver of a car struck by a train in Delta Township Thursday night, drove around the gates at the crossing, according to a press statement from the Eaton County Sheriff's Office. The driver of the car, Hermes Fernandez-Lopez, 39 of Lansing, was killed upon impact.

The statement says "According to the train engineer, the gates were down as they approached the area."

The accident happened at the Millett Crossing near Lansing Road at about 9:11 P.M. The accident was cleared at 2:30 A.M.

The Amtrak Blue Water train was traveling from Chicago to Port Huron. There were about 120 passengers on the train. Several school buses were called to transport about seventy passengers to the East Lansing Amtrak station. The remaining 50 or so passengers chose to stay on board the train, which did have heat and electricity.