7 hurt in train-truck collision

CRYSTAL SPRINGS, Miss., May 27 (UPI) -- An Amtrak passenger train collided with a garbage truck in Mississippi Tuesday, injuring seven people, authorities said.

The victims, who included two people in the truck and two crew members, were airlifted to the University of Mississippi Medical Center, The Clarion-Ledger in Jackson reported.

The Mississippi Emergency Management Agency said there were about 98 people on board the train, the newspaper reported. An Amtrak spokesman said the 1 p.m. crash occurred when the truck "passed into the path" of Train 59 City of New Orleans just north of Crystal Springs.

A passenger in the dining car when the accident happened told The Clarion-Ledger the car quickly filled with smoke and many people panicked, leaping from emergency exits.

The train was on its way to New Orleans, the newspaper said.

"It jostled us around when it hit, the coach rocked pretty good," said Dale Dupont, who was traveling with his wife and granddaughter from Memphis to Hammond.