3 dead, 1 injured after train crashes into van in Virginia

STUARTS DRAFT, Va. — Three people were killed and a fourth was seriously injured when a train struck a van, according to Virginia State Police.

A Ford Transit van was traveling on a private drive in Stuarts Draft in Augusta County around 8 p.m. Monday when it crossed the tracks and was struck by a northbound train, causing the van to roll over, police said in a news release.

Two men and a woman were ejected from the van and died at the scene, police said. They were identified as Abner Comete, 48, of Boynton Beach, Florida; Jacner Comete, 44, of Lauderhill, Florida; and Wilda Comete, 38, of Lithia Springs, Georgia. Abner Comete is believed to be the driver of the van, police said.

Another woman, a front seat passenger, was taken to a hospital with injuries that were considered serious but not life-threatening, police said.

Sgt. C.J. Aikens of the Virginia State Police said the van was leaving a solar project site when a Norfolk Southern train headed north toward Waynesboro from Stuarts Draft struck the driver’s side, The News Virginian reported. A preliminary investigation did not indicate that the van broke down at the time of the crash, Aikens said.