Train Versus Car Hit And Run Tracked By License Plate

WILMETTE, IL — After responding to a train versus SUV accident at Green Bay and Oakwood, Wilmette police discovered a licence plate and debris from a bumper that led them to track down and cite a 63-year old woman — who had been inches away from serious injury or death after parking on train tracks — with traffic violations. Police were told the a black Lexus RX 35 SUV had been stopped on the tracks around 8:15 on April 17 when the the signal gates closed on it. It was then was struck by a train heading north.

The train stopped, but the driver of the SUV left the scene. The force of the collision sheared off the front bumper of the car but the rest of the car remained intact, police said.

The driver of the SUV told police she panicked when the gates came down on her vehicle, but Wilmette deputy police chief Kyle Murphy said she appeared to have been able to reverse off the tracks at any time.

Top photo: Location of the collision (Street view)