RSS 2.0 FeedMarch 17, 2011, Wantagh Seaford Citizen
45-year-old woman killed at Wantagh LIRR station by train
Unidentified woman on tracks a possible suicide.
A 45-year-old woman was struck and killed by a westbound express train at the Wantagh train station at 11:20 a.m.
Sam Zambuto, spokesperson for the Long island Rail Road, told The Citizen that an 11:08 a.m. Babylon express train due to stop at Freeport at 11:20 a.m. before arriving at Penn Station at 12:07 p.m. struck an "unauthorized 45-year-old woman" on the tracks approximately 50 feet west of the western edge of the Wantagh station platform.
Service in both directions was fully restored by 1:10 p.m. Mr. Zambuto said that travelers on the impacted train were accommodated by the next westbound train.
An eyewitness, who was not identified, told the Citizen that a woman appeared on the northbound tracks approximately 50 feet from the western edge of the platform as a westbound express train was traveling through the station.
The eyewitness told the Citizen the engineer frantically applied the brakes about 50 yards from where the woman stood on the tracks and blew his horn, but could not stop the train in time.
Mr. Zambuto said MTA police are investigating the death as a possible suicide.
In December 2009 16-year-old Mepham student James Clare of Bellmore was killed on the same line west of the Bellmore station during a snowstorm. He was also unauthorized to be on the tracks, and his death was deemed a suicide.
– with additional reporting by Christopher McBride
