Southwest Chief Collides With Truck, 3 Killed

Above, a westbound Southwest Chief train pulls into Gallup station. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

A train of the Amtrak line I took two years ago from Riverside, California to Gallup, New Mexico following my aunt's funeral collided with a dump truck in Missouri and derailed. Three people were killed.

The train was of the Southwest Chief line. The train was en route from Los Angeles to Chicago.

It likely came through Gallup at about 7:00-8:00 this morning.

According to the Santa Fe New Mexican:

MENDON, Mo. — Three people were killed and several others were injured Monday when a passenger train traveling from Los Angeles to Chicago struck a dump truck and derailed in a remote, rural area of Missouri, officials said.

Two of the people who died were on the train and one was in the truck, Missouri State Highway Patrol spokesman Cpl. Justin Dunn said. It was not immediately clear exactly how many people were hurt, the patrol said. Several hospitals said they had received patients and were expecting more.

The Southwest Chief was carrying about 243 passengers and 12 crew members when the collision happened near Mendon, Amtrak said. The Highway Patrol said seven cars derailed.

The collision occurred at a rural intersection on a gravel road with no crossing arms, Dunn said. A 911 call about the collision came in at 12:43 p.m. and the first emergency responders arrived within 20 minutes, he said.

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