One person killed as Amtrak train hits car in East Durham
One person was killed when a car crossing the railroad tracks in East Durham was hit by an Amtrak train on Thursday evening.
The Audi sedan was on South Driver Street near the intersection with East Pettigrew Street when it was hit shortly before 8:30 p.m., according to police.
Police say the driver, Charles Hightower, was the sole occupant of the car, which caught fire after the collision. Hightower, 52, was pronounced dead at the scene.
Investigators say Hightower apparently turned from East Pettigrew onto South Driver headed north and became stuck on the tracks when the crossing arms came down, said Durham police Capt. R.S. Packard. There are traffic lights on either side of the crossing, at Pettigrew and East Peabody streets, but investigators have not said why they think Hightower got trapped on the tracks.
No one on the train was seriously injured, according to Jeff Roberts, a division chief with the Durham Fire Department. Roberts said EMS evaluated one passenger for a panic attack but did not take anyone to a hospital.
The train was No. 76, the northbound Piedmont from Charlotte. It had just stopped in Durham and was headed to Cary and Raleigh. Amtrak posted on social media that the train would not complete its route.
The fire damaged the exterior of one of the train cars, but did not get inside, according to Roberts. Amtrak told local authorities it was making plans for alternate transportation, but so close to the end of the line, most passengers were arranging their own, Roberts said.
With the tracks still blocked, the later eastbound Piedmont train, No. 78, ended its run at the Durham station late Thursday. Amtrak provided alternate transportation to Cary and Raleigh for those who needed it.
East Pettigrew Street also remained closed after the crash as officers continued to investigate.
The Driver Street crossing is one of three in East Durham that state and local officials have targeted for closure. Last summer, Durham County and GoTriangle received a $1.2 million federal grant to develop plans to close the crossings at Driver, South Plum Street and Ellis Road for safety reasons.
In 25 years, there had been 19 crashes at those crossings, killing three people and injuring 9 more, according to the county.
This story was originally published March 14, 2024 at 10:12 PM.
