2 killed after a car tried to beat a train at a crossing in Houston

By Michelle Watson, CNN

Two people were killed after their car crashed into an Amtrak train Saturday night in Houston as the vehicle was trying to beat the train at a crossing, officials said.

The car, possibly a Chrysler 300, went around another vehicle stopped at the Van Hut Lane crossing and “tried to cut through the arms” that were down, Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez said.

The car collided with the passenger train and was “quickly engulfed in flames,” Harris said. Two people were thrown from the vehicle and pronounced dead at the scene, he added.

“The sound and the arms were down at the train crossing,” Gonzalez said. “There’s a reason that those arms are activated, lights and sounds are activated, it’s to keep the community safe and to alert that there’s a train approaching.”

The train was carrying 81 passengers and traveling westbound from New Orleans to Los Angeles, Amtrak spokeswoman Kimberly Woods said in a statement.

The train remained upright and intact on track, the statement said.

“It never ends well when somebody tries to beat a train,” Gonzalez said. “It’s going to be a lengthy investigation.”

Amtrak said it’s working with local law enforcement to investigate the crash.

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CNN’s Kate Conerly contributed to this report.