Man dead after crash

By Bruno Matarazzo Jr.
Staff Writer

November 04, 2008 12:19 am

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SALEM — A 76-year-old Peabody man died last night within hours after he drove into the tunnel at the Salem Depot and crashed into an oncoming commuter rail train packed with passengers.

Salem police identified the driver as Edward Sullivan of Goodale Street in West Peabody. It's not clear if the injuries from the crash caused his death. No passengers on the commuter rail were injured.

The collision happened about 100 feet into the tunnel at 5:30 p.m. just as a Rockport-bound train was arriving at the Salem Depot.

Why Sullivan drove into the tunnel remains under investigation by Salem detectives and MBTA police.

Witnesses said the motorist was able to drive onto the platform from an area that is level with the parking lot.

Minutes before the collision, another outbound train arrived at Salem. That's when Brian Stanley, 27, of Gloucester got off the train and saw a car on the platform, 3 feet from the tracks.

"I said to the guy, 'Are you all right? Do you need help backing up?'" Stanley said.

Stanley said the driver appeared disoriented and confused and was sweating profusely.

When the train left Salem, Stanley said the car, a 2001 Toyota Avalon, turned right and drove along the length of the platform, which is about the same height with the tracks.

Stanley chased after the car, which was going about 15 mph.

Gustavo Ornelas, 28, of Boston was walking down the steps from Bridge Street to the depot when he saw the car driving along the platform. He raced down the steps.

Stanley and Ornelas said the car drove down the length of the platform. Once at the end, the car stopped and then backed up before turning left onto the tracks and into the tunnel.

"My mouth dropped," said Walter Powers, who was waiting to get on the Rockport-bound train. "I was saying Hail Marys he was going so fast."

Passengers waiting for the train began dialing 911; Powers said he soon heard the train whistle go off.

Salem police Capt. Paul Tucker said the train engineer saw the oncoming car and was able to slow down before impact. The car was pushed back 50 to 60 yards before stopping.

Passengers on the train didn't know the train struck a car until an announcement was made over the intercom. Passengers only noticed that the train had stopped abruptly.

Alyssa Boutte of Gloucester, on the train in the second-to-last railcar, said she heard the conductor announcing Salem as the next stop, and passengers were getting up to get ready to exit when the train came to a halt.

"A couple of minutes later, the lights went out, and a couple minutes later they told us the train hit a vehicle," Boutte said.

Tim McLaughlin was sitting in the train in disbelief when he heard the news over the intercom.

"How do you hit a vehicle in a tunnel?" McLaughlin asked himself.

Salem police and firefighters arrived on the scene first.

MBTA spokeswoman Lydia Rivera said the man got out of the car on his own and was conscious and alert at the scene and at a hospital, where he talked with investigators.

Salem Deputy fire Chief Brian Harrington said Sullivan was sitting in the driver's seat of his car with his legs out of the car when he arrived. The air bags deployed in the car, but Harrington does not know if Sullivan was wearing his seat belt.

Police and firefighters waited for paramedics from Northshore Ambulance to arrive on scene to place him on a stretcher and carry him out of the tunnel to an awaiting ambulance.

Police and firefighters then helped evacuate passengers on the train. Hundreds of passengers streamed out of the tunnel.

The crash stranded commuters looking to head inbound and outbound from Salem. About an hour after the collision, a train arrived from Beverly to complete service to Rockport. Buses arrived a short time later to shuttle commuters into and out of Salem.

The MBTA said train service resumed at 7:50 p.m., once a tow truck was able to back into the tunnel and haul out the crumpled Toyota. The train was not damaged.

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