Police: Woman stops on tracks, bails from SUV before it gets hit by Metra train in Lake Forest
LAKE FOREST, Ill. (CBS) -- A woman stopped in the middle of the Metra tracks in Lake Forest Friday, and left her vehicle just before it got hit by a train, police said.
At 2:22 p.m., Lake Forest police and fire crews were called to Western Avenue and Ryan Place for a report that a Metra train had hit a vehicle at the nearby railroad crossing.
Police learned a woman was driving a white 2023 Ford Explorer west on Ryan Place from Washington Road when she approached the train crossing before the stop sign at Western Avenue.
There was another car stopped at that stop sign, so the driver stopped in the middle of the tracks to wait for traffic to clear, police said. The driver said her car "shut off," and as she tried to get it restarted, she saw a northbound train coming, police said.
She abandoned her sport-utility vehicle, which went on to get hit by the train, police said.
No one was injured in the accident. The Ford Explorer was significantly damaged, but officers were able to start it up and tow it away, police said.
Metra said one track was kept open for train movement after Train No. 346 hit the SUV, but most inbound and outbound Union Pacific North trains were halted. Union Pacific North trains were back on the move by 4:30 p.m., but delays of up to an hour were expected.
The driver was issued traffic citations and will need to appear in court in June.
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