Canton Township, MI—five teenagers were killed by an Amtrak train while travelling in a car on Thursday after the driver, 19-year-old Dan Broughton, sped around a lowered railroad crossing gate to attempt beating the train. Broughton had his license suspended the day before the accident for driving without carrying a license back in April of this year. Furthermore, he had a history of traffic violations on his record, including speeding and running a stop sign.
The surveillance video released by police revealed that Broughton’s car never slowed down as it came towards the lowered gate, and instead he proceeded past a stopped SUV. The train barreled through at about 67 mph around 12:30 p.m., broadsiding the car as Broughton attempted to cross the tracks. The car was crumpled underneath of the front of the train and ended up right-side up with its roof and front crushed.
Friends, family and community members are stunned and questioning why Broughton would assume it was safe to try to cross the tracks. Drugs and alcohol do not seem to be involved. Other than Dan Broughton, 19, the four other teenagers that were killed included Eddie Gross, 17, Sean Harris, 19, Terrence Harris, 21, and Jessica Sadler, 14. The train also contained approximately 170 people, but none of the passengers were injured.
