3 dead in Calif. after truck pulls in front of Amtrak train

A driver of a pickup truck in Fresno, Calif., pulled in front of a speeding Amtrak train Friday, causing a fatal accident. The force split the truck in half and killed all three occupants, The Associated Press reported, but there were no serious injuries to the train passengers.

{mosads}The driver pulled around a stopped freight train at a crossing on a private dirt road when the vehicle was slammed by the Amtrak train traveling on the other set of tracks, Officer Josh McConnell of the California Highway Patrol told the AP.

“They weren’t taking into consideration that there were two sets of tracks there,” he said.

The train carrying 205 passengers was traveling at up to 80 mph.

The collision happened in Madera County, north of Fresno in an area surrounded by vineyards. The unidentified men were in their late 20s or early 30s, the AP said.