New York – Driver Of Train Collision SUV ID’d As Jewish Mom Of Rivertowns

New York – The driver of the SUV who died in a collision with a Metro-North commuter train is remembered as a mother of three who was kind and not one to take risks.

Ellen Brody’s life came to a sudden, fiery end when the train plowed into her Mercedes that was stopped at a crossing. The vehicle exploded into flames and set fire to the front of the train, killing five passengers.

According to friends of the family, the 49-year-old woman was on her way home from Chappaqua (CHAP’-uh-kwah), where she worked at a jewelry shop.

The Journal news says, that the family was active in Chabad of the Rivertowns. Rabbi Benjy Silverman was consoling the bereaved family Wednesday.

“The big question everyone wants to know is: Why was this vehicle in the crossing?” said Robert Sumwalt, NTSB vice chairman.

As of Wednesday evening, investigators had no evidence the crossing gates weren’t working properly, but their examination was just beginning, Sumwalt said.

Among other things, investigators also planned to examine the tracks, interview the crew and find out whether the SUV had a data recorder of its own.

Brody was a mother of three grown daughters and an active, outgoing member of her synagogue. And she was “not risky when it came to her safety or others,” said family friend Paul Feiner, the town supervisor in Greenburgh.

Railroad grade crossings typically have gate arms designed to lift automatically if they hit a car or other object on the way down, railroad safety consultant Grady Cothen said. The wooden arms are designed to be easily broken if a car trapped between them moves forward or backward, he said.

Acknowledging that collisions between trains and cars rarely cause rider deaths, Sumwalt said the NTSB would also examine the adequacy of the train’s exits and the intensity of the fire, which investigators believe was sparked by the SUV’s gas tank.

Sen. Charles Schumer said early indications are that the train was going 58 mph, or within the 60-to-70-mph speed limit in that area. The NTSB said it wanted to confirm speed and other data extracted from the recorder before releasing it.