Chicago-bound Amtrak train hits vehicle near Ann Arbor

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Updated: February 1, 2012 9:40AM

An Amtrak train on its way from Pontiac, Mich., to Chicago struck “a heavy vehicle” near Ann Arbor, causing the engine to fall onto its side and the first two cars of the train to lose contact with the rails.

There are no reports of life-threatening injuries from Amtrak passengers or crew from an incident involving Amtrak Wolverine Service Train 351, Amtrak said Wednesday.

The train “made contact with a heavy vehicle in its path at a public highway crossing,” Amtrak said. At the time of the incident, the train was eastbound from Pontiac, Mich., to Chicago with 71 passengers, five crew members and a train consisting of two locomotives and six railcars.

Service is suspended across central Michigan for the next several hours with alternate transportation being arranged for this and other Wolverine Service trains, Amtrak said.