By Jerald Jimenez
24 Sep 2023, 16:46 PM EDT
A tragic accident occurred in Florida after a freight train collided with a pickup truck in Plant City, claiming the lives of six people, authorities reported.
The Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office reported that the accident occurred around 6:45 p.m. Saturday after a Cadillac Escalade carrying a family was struck at US-92 and Jim Lefler Circle by a train traveling to 55mph.
The victims of the accident, who were on their way to a fifteen-year-old girl, were “violently” ejected after the impact, killing six of them and seriously injuring one of them. The fatal victims were identified as the driver José G. Hernández, 52 years old; Enedelia Hernández, 51; Jakub A. López, 17; Alyssa Hernandez, 17; Anaelia Hernández, 22; and Julián Hernández, 9 years old, WFLA reported.
Authorities added that the surviving victim was front passenger Guillermo E. Gama III, 23. But the sheriff’s office said he is in critical condition at Lakeland Regional Health.
Bureau Chief Chad Chronister said Saturday night that the scene was horrifying to see and described the family’s van as a “broken soda can.”
“I think anyone who has seen the carnage that has been created, any time you add that up with children that lost their lives here, maybe an entire family, maybe an entire family lost their lives here tonight,” Chronister said. “We are all visibly shaken.”
No injuries were reported inside the train, authorities said. The train crossing had no crossbars, just a stop sign. But rail safety expert Michael Callanan said the road was not intended for public traffic.
“This road is a private maintenance road, an access road to a house,” Callanan told the aforementioned media. “I think there are two houses back there. It is not a public road; It’s just a path to get home. So there’s no need to have those warning devices there because it’s privately owned.”
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