Woman, Baby Escape Train Crash, Second Incident Involving Brightline Since Sunday

FORT LAUDERDALE (CBSMiami/AP) - For a second time since the start of the week, there has been a crash involving a Brightline train.

Early Tuesday morning, a woman and her baby left their car on the tracks and it was hit by a train in Delray Beach.

According to Delray Beach Fire Rescue, the woman was trying to cross the tracks where there was no intersection or street and got stuck.

The train ended up blocking the SW 10th Street crossing until the car could be removed. Neither the woman nor her baby was hurt.

Delray Beach police said the woman was taken into custody under the Baker Act because she intentionally drove off the road and onto the tracks.

On Sunday, another Brightline crash ended in a fatality.

The Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office said Hidegalde Perez, 48, of West Palm Beach died when after he drove around the flashing warning signals and his car was struck by a Brightline train.

The Ford Fusion that Perez was driving was tossed into a metal fence and a power pole before it landed on its passenger side.

It's at least the seventh death involving Brightline since the railroad resumed operations late last year following a shutdown for much of the pandemic.

Last month, a man was fatally struck by a high-speed train as he crossed the tracks in Hollywood.

Other recent deaths include a 68-year-old man and his sister who were struck by a train when the brother drove his SUV around a lowered crossing gate in Hallandale Beach.

None of the 52 earlier deaths involving Brightline have been blamed on its equipment or crews. Investigations showed most victims were either suicidal, intoxicated, mentally ill, or had gone around barriers at an intersection in an attempt to beat the trains, which travel up to 79 mph through densely populated areas between Miami and West Palm Beach.

(© Copyright 2022 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)