New Video Shows Fatal Collision Between LIRR Trains And SUV On Tracks

NBC 4 New York has obtained exclusive footage of the Long Island Railroad collision that left three people dead and seven people injured on Tuesday night. In a video captured by nearby security cameras, a train can be seen leaving Westbury Station, only to smash into a vehicle on the tracks. Immediately after the collision, another train comes speeding toward the station, crashing into the platform.

"[We heard] a lot of people screaming, and we saw a lot of people running on the platform on the other side," Yuri Cruz, who was working nearby at the time of the accident, told NBC 4. "They were banging on the windows."

On Wednesday, witnesses told Nassau County police that the SUV may have wound up on the train tracks after its driver fled a minor car crash, attempting to "beat the gate" at the crossing by Westbury Station. An eastbound train carrying 800 people careened into the car first, followed shortly thereafter by a train headed west to Penn Station, traveling at full speed with 200 passengers onboard. That second train derailed as it came into the station, the concrete platform cutting into the train's side.

As shown on the video, the SUV was engulfed in flames upon impact: According to the NY Times, only the engine could be salvaged. All three people inside were killed, while the train's engineer—who had been pinned under debris—was severely injured.

The Times also reports that the fatal crossing is one of seven crossings in a 20 mile stretch that had been deemed hazardous and were scheduled to be shut down completely. Construction on an underpass for vehicles at this crossing is scheduled to begin next year.

"I knew something was wrong. We were in a panic," one train passenger recalled after the crash. "There was a screech and then there was a thud. They told us to walk westerly and there were two small fires. Smoke was kind of coming in so they told us to just keep walking."

The three men killed in the crash—Jesus Hernandez, Saul Martinez, and Miguel Angel Luna—were reportedly friends and worked together at the Fine Fare grocery store on Old Country Road in Westbury. They had reportedly visited a nearby barber shop, then a neighboring bar and restaurant, in the hours before the accident.

They were allegedly involved in a fender-bender at a local strip mall, and drove off when the other driver involved said she would call the police. Their manager, Giovanny Taveres, described the trio to the Times as "good people, hardworking people."

The crash created a raft of service changes, delays, and cancellations on the LIRR Main Line—which, according to the Times, has seen six deadly collisions between 2007 and 2017—into Thursday, as crews worked to remove the ravaged cars and repair the track. Commuters should keep an eye on the LIRR Twitter account for updates.