Child among three dead after Amtrak train hits van in upstate New York

NEW YORK — A child was among three victims killed when a passenger train struck a pickup truck, officials said.

The northbound Amtrak train struck a Dodge truck Friday evening in North Tonawanda, New York, a small town along the Niagara River between Niagara Falls and Buffalo, police said.

The victims included a 6-year-old boy, a 66-year-old woman and a 69-year-old man, Capt. Daryl Truty of the North Tonawanda Police Department said in a statement released Saturday. The names of the victims had not been released as of Sunday morning.

None of the Amtrak crew or its 21 passengers were injured in the crash, Amtrak spokeswoman Olivia Irvin said in a statement. The train was en route from New York to Niagara Falls when the accident occurred.

The van was so badly damaged that heavy equipment was required to reach the victims, the North Tonawanda firefighters union said in a statement. The three victims died instantly.

Other details, including the location of the vehicle at the time of the crash, have not been released.

Local television and print media, citing eyewitnesses, reported that the van got stuck between the barriers of a level crossing. Reports from the WIVB and Buffalo News indicate there was a disabled vehicle and police vehicles near the crossing before the crash.

Messages seeking comment were left Sunday with North Tonawanda police and mayoral officials.