Five people died when a Canadian Pacific Kansas City freight train collided with a van at a crossing in rural Mississippi, authorities said Saturday. Stone County Coroner Wayne Flurry said all the fatalities were in the van, while the railroad said no one aboard the train was reported injured.
Flurry said the lone surviving van passenger was a 23-year-old woman who was flown to a hospital. The crash occurred near the town of Wiggins, about 45 miles (72 kilometers) northwest of Biloxi, according to the railroad’s statement and the local coroner’s account.
The coroner identified the driver of the van as Ryan C. Peterson, 26, and said front-seat passenger Kristina Carver, 45, also died. Flurry said Carver’s daughters, Emley Chamblee, 22, and Sarabeth Chamblee, 20, were among those killed, along with 23-year-old Demarcus Perkins.
In a statement, the railroad said the company’s freight train struck the vehicle at the crossing and said the Stone County Sheriff’s Office was investigating. The company said, “Our most sincere condolences go out to the families of the victims of this tragedy,” and it reiterated that the crash occurred in the Wiggins area.