3 dead after Mansfield Amtrak crash identified

MANSFIELD, Mass. (MyFoxBoston.com) -- Three people who died after their Land Rover collided with an Amtrak train in Mansfield Sunday have been identified.

Both of the male victim's were identified Wednesday and the third female victim the following day. The woman was identified Thursday, via her family's postings on social media, as Emily Harrop, 26, of North Attleboro, according to the Sun Chronicle. She was reportedly an employee at the YMCA.

One Wednesday, the State Medical Examiner's Office identified two of the victim's as Zachary Keene, 26, of Raynham and David Curry, 28, of Foxboro. Additional forensic testing needs to be completed before the third victim, a woman in her 20s, is identified, officials say.

Keene lived in Norton and grew up in Raynham. His friends described him as a talented musician and say he played in a Beatles cover band with his father. Curry was a hockey enthusiast and former nightclub DJ.

As friends and family mourn the three lives lost, investigators are trying to determine why they drove on the tracks and how they managed to enter what was supposed to be a secure area.

The SUV was near mile marker 200.44 in Mansfield when it was hit by train 132 just before 12 a.m. Three people inside the Land Rover, Keene, Curry and the female victim, died from their injuries. It is unclear where they accessed the tracks, however investigators said both the train and SUV were traveling north at the time of the crash.

During a press conference late Monday morning, officials said the train was going 125 miles per hour when it collided with the SUV. Transit police said the impact and speed created a large crime scene, which spanned at least 3/4 of a mile from impact to where the train stopped after it derailed.

Sergeant Detective Ken Sprague said, "I have no doubt that the engineer, when he realized there was a vehicle that had followed the right of way, put the train into an emergency situation and I think that may be the part of the reason the train derailed."

More than 200 passengers were on train 132 Washington, D.C. to Boston. No passengers were injured.

Passengers tweeted that they felt a jolt then smelled smoke and gas. They say the crew told them the train had struck something.

Passenger Mark Scott said, "There was a sudden jolt, sudden deceleration. You heard this loud rumble, sudden shock."

An MBTA train was brought in to take more than 100 passengers to Boston. Service to and from Boston at South Station, Back Bay Station, and the Route 128 station was canceled for several trains early Monday morning as crews worked to remove damaged rail equipment. Amtrak service from Boston to Providence was restored by 7 a.m.

State and local police are trying to determine how and where the SUV accessed the train tracks and why they were on them to begin with.

Police Chief Ron Sellon said, "There are multiple access points, all along the tracks, for miles. There are multiple locations that the vehicle could have gained access to the tracks."

The investigation remains ongoing.

Cox Media Group