Death toll rises in Nevada truck-train crash

Authorities say a tractor-trailer slammed into an Amtrak passenger train in Nevada on June 24.NEW: Sheriff's office: "No names are being released pending positive identification"Federal investigators try to rectify passenger manifest with number on the trainAuthorities say the truck skidded more than 300 feet before hitting the trainAmateur video paints a chaotic scene following the crashRead more about this story from CNN affiliate KOLO.

(CNN) -- Six people were killed when a tractor-trailer truck slammed into a Chicago-to-California Amtrak passenger train at a railroad crossing east of Reno, Nevada, authorities said late Saturday.

The death toll was released just as federal authorities said they were trying to account for passengers missing from the passenger train that was struck Friday at a railroad crossing near Lovelock, Nevada.

"No names are being released pending positive identification and notification of families," the Churchill County, Nevada, sheriff's department said in a written statement.

The National Transportation Safety Board, which is investigating, is trying to account for passengers listed on the manifest but not located after the crash, Earl Weener of the NTSB told reporters during a news conference late Saturday night in Sparks, Nevada.

In some cases, it is believed people got off the train earlier or bought a ticket but did not take the train, he said.

"There are a number of reasons that the manifest and that number don't jibe," Weener said.

The 10-car train, which was on its way to Emeryville, California, was carrying 204 passengers and 14 crew members, Amtrak said in a statement released Friday.

It was not immediately clear how many people were injured. Amtrak said that numerous people aboard the train had been taken to area hospitals for treatment.

Amateur video taken after the crash showed huge plumes of black smoke billowing from the train as a fire burned. Passengers and crew members stood outside.

One voice on the video can be heard telling people to get away from the smoke. Another tells a woman, out of view, to "hang and jump." A third voice asks someone, "Are you OK?"

"Next thing I know, we get hit by something. A big ball of fire comes in. I jumped out the window," passenger Justin Rhine told CNN affiliate KOLO-TV in Reno. "I saw people flying on the other side of the train."

Skid marks show the driver of the truck slammed on his brakes, sliding more than 300 feet before hitting the train, sparking a fire, Weener said. The fire burned the truck and two train cars, he said.

The initial investigation found the signal light and crossing guard arms were working, and that there was good visibility of the train tracks from the road, he said.

The truck was the lead in a three-truck convoy as it approached the train tracks, Weener said.

The two following saw the train signal and slowed to stop, "waiting for him to come to stop," he said.

Though the driver of the truck has not been identified, Weener said the truck belonged to John Davies Trucking of Battle Mountain, Nevada.

The trucking company, which advertises itself as family-owned business that hauls concrete, did not immediately respond to a CNN request for comment.

CNN

2 dead in Nevada truck-train collision

At least two people are dead after a collision involving a train and tractor-trailer in Nevada on Friday.NEW: Nevada Highway Patrol confirms two deaths in truck-train crashNEW: The accident scene is shut down for federal accident investigatorsThe crash involved a Chicago-to-California Amtrak passenger train

(CNN) -- The site of a deadly truck-train collision east of Reno, Nevada, remained shut down Saturday as federal accident investigators examined the scene, a state trooper said.

Two people died in the accident Friday morning, Trooper Dan Lopez of the Nevada Highway Patrol confirmed Saturday.

It was unclear how many people were injured when a tractor-trailer slammed into a Chicago-to-California Amtrak passenger train at a railroad crossing near Lovelock, Nevada.

Amtrak said Friday that numerous people aboard the train had been transported to hospitals for treatment.

The truck struck the train, which was on its way to Emeryville, California, at 11:20 a.m., Amtrak said in a written statement. The train was carrying 204 passengers and 14 crew members, according to the statement.

The National Transportation Safety Board dispatched investigators within hours of the accident, the agency said.

Amateur video taken after the crash showed huge plumes of black smoke billowing from the train as a fire burned.

CNN

NTSB to investigate truck-train collision

At least two people are dead after a collision involving a train and tractor-trailer in Nevada on Friday.Federal investigators are on their way to the scene of a truck versus train crashAn Amtrak train and a tractor-trailer truck crash east of Reno, NevadaAt least two people have been killed, authorities sayThe train was headed to Emeryville, California, from Chicago

(CNN) -- A team of federal investigators has been dispatched to the scene of a truck-train collision east of Reno, Nevada, that killed at least two people, the National Transportation Safety Board said.

The investigators were expected to arrive in Nevada late Friday night, hours after a tractor-trailer slammed into an Amtrak train at a public railroad crossing in the town of Lovelock, the NTSB said.

The truck struck the train, which was on its way to Emeryville, California from Chicago, at 11:20 a.m., Amtrak said in a written statement. The train was carrying 204 passengers and 14 crew members, it said.

"Preliminary reports are that there have been fatalities to passengers, an Amtrak train crew member and the operator of the truck," the Amtrak statement said. "There were numerous others transported to area hospitals for treatment of injuries."

Amtrak spokesman Mark Magliari declined to confirm the number of injuries.

Nevada Highway Patrol Trooper Danny Lopez said at least two people, one on the train and one in the truck, were killed in the accident.

Amateur video taken after the crash showed huge plumes of black smoke billowing from the train as a fire burned. Passengers and crew members stood outside.

Firefighters and law enforcement authorities were on the scene, and buses were being sent to pick up stranded passengers, Lopez said.

CNN