A 16-year-old boy and a 14-year-old girl were struck and killed by a train in Toronto late Monday, though police won’t say why it’s believed they were on the tracks.
Toronto police Insp. Keri Fernandes said during a press conference Tuesday morning that just after 10 p.m., a train was travelling westbound to Toronto Pearson International Airport from Union Station.
Near Eglinton Avenue and Weston Road, the two teenagers were struck by the train, she said.
They died at the scene.
“The train at the time had over 200 passengers on it. These incidents are traumatic for both the families of the victims and the persons involved in the train,” Fernandes said.
“Toronto police are seeking anybody with information about what happened prior to that to come forth and to contact traffic services. But also, we want them to be mindful of their own health and if they’re experiencing anything that they need assistance with, to reach out to Toronto Victim Services and make use of their counselling.”
It’s not clear where the teens entered the train tracks.
A reporter asked Fernandes why it’s believed they were on the tracks at the time, but she said officials “won’t be speaking to that at all at this point.”
“That’s part of the investigation,” she said, later noting that aspect of the investigation hasn’t been “completely uncovered yet.”
She implored people to stay away from train tracks.
“Railway safety is very important to us here and we want to take the opportunity to remind people that walking on the tracks at any period of time is dangerous and people need to stay away from all railways,” she said
Fernandes didn’t say what the relationship was between the victims.
The UP Express train service was suspended for several hours “due to a fatality,” according to the official UP Express website.
The service has now been restored.
Fernandes said the first people who called 911 were the train operators.
“(It’s a) traumatic incident for staff and all first responders involved,” GO Transit’s chief operating officer Martin Gallagher said at the press conference.
“We have a counseling service for our staff… One of our priorities is to make sure that we manage the mental health of those involved.”
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Gallagher said that the location where the collision occurred is between stations.
“This is a tragic incident…. we implore people to stay away from live train tracks,” he said.
“Please do not cross open railway lines.”
Gallagher said passengers remained on the train “for a period of time” while police investigated before they got off at Mount Dennis Station.
Buses were brought in to transit passengers from Union Station to Pearson Airport during the service suspension.
— With a file from The Canadian Press
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