EVERETT — A woman was seriously injured Thursday night after her Lexus was hit by an Amtrak train in Everett.
At about 7 p.m., the Lexus was crossing the Burlington Northern Santa Fe tracks near the intersection of S. First Avenue and Lenora Street, officials said. That’s where Lowell Snohomish River Road heads into Everett.
The Lexus was struck by a southbound Amtrak train that was on its way to Chicago.
The woman was taken to a local hospital and then to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle.
“She’s in pretty serious condition,” Everett police Sgt. Robert Goetz said Thursday night.
It appears the vehicle pulled onto the tracks after the gates had gone down, Goetz said. The driver may have been stopped on the tracks and was struck broadside, but it was too early to tell.
Everett police collision investigators planned to spend much of Thursday night at the scene, Goetz said.
The tracks reopened about 8 p.m., a Burlington Northern Santa Fe spokesman said. About four of their freight trains were delayed due to the crash.
Attempts to reach Amtrak were unsuccessful after hours Thursday.
A man who was on the train said no one on board appeared to be injured.
Matt Ebert, 39, of Bothell, was headed from Seattle to Washington, D.C., on a trip with his 3-year-old son. He called KIRO 7 TV news and then talked to The Herald.
He was in a dining car when the crash happened, just after the train pulled out of Everett Station, he said. The train came to a sudden stop that felt like a car braking hard.
“There was a little bit of jerk,” he said, but the plates stayed on the table.
Ebert’s sleeper car was four or five cars back on the train, he said. After the crash, he could see car parts and glass strewn on the ground from his window.
People on board stayed calm and waited for updates, he said. Train officials told passengers they likely would have to change trains due to damage from the wreck.
More details weren’t available Thursday night.
Rikki King: 425-339-3449; rking@heraldnet.com.
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