Man
killed in Wheaton train-car collision
Posted Jan 21, 2010 @ 12:34 PM
Last update Jan 21, 2010 @ 05:30 PM
Glen Ellyn, IL —
A Lisle man was killed when a freight
train hit his car after he drove around the gates at the Union Pacific train
tracks in Wheaton this morning.
According to Deputy Chief Tom Meloni
of the Wheaton Police Department, 70-year-old H. Thomas Powers was traveling
north on President Street, and attempted to drive around the railroad gate,
when an eastbound Union Pacific freight train struck his car around 10:35 a.m.
Thursday, police said.
The man was alive when police arrived
on the scene. He was transported to Central DuPage Hospital, where he was
pronounced dead.
There were no passengers in the
vehicle.
Wheaton Police and Fire Department
personnel responded to the crash.
Because of the crash, all railroad
crossings through downtown Wheaton remained blocked for more than two hours.
All train traffic, including freight and passenger trains, was also stopped for
about 90 minutes, during the investigation.
The President Street railroad
crossing will be closed for several days so the railroad can repair railroad
equipment, which also sustained damage in the crash.
