State urged safety upgrades for site of fatal Amtrak wreck
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By CHARLIE RIEDEL and SUMMER BALLENTINE
Associated Press
MENDON, Mo. (AP) — A Missouri Department of Transportation plan released this year cited a need to improve safety at the rail crossing where an Amtrak train and a dump truck collided, resulting in the deaths of two passengers and the truck driver. Amtrak’s Southwest Chief was traveling from Los Angeles to Chicago Monday afternoon when it struck the truck and derailed at the crossing near Mendon. It wasn’t immediately clear how many people were hurt but hospitals near the western Missouri accident scene reported receiving around 60 patients from the crash. The collision derailed seven cars and left the dump truck in pieces.