Truck driver critical after collision with train

Troopers with the Florida Highway Patrol say the driver of a tractor-trailer truck was struck by a train in Cocoa, Florida on Monday.

The crash happened as the driver of the truck arrived at a railroad crossing at Beau Geste Road, shortly before noon.  Troopers say the Florida East Coast (FEC) freight train was traveling at a speed of about 25-30 miles per hour as the truck entered the intersection.

The impact split the tractor-trailer apart. The cab smashed through the train crossing arm, until it came to rest about sixty feet away from the impact. But the driver, identified as a 49-year-old Lakeland resident, was blasted out of the cab and sent flying towards the rail road tracks.

He was flown to Holmes Regional Medical Center in Melbourne, where he remains hospitalized in critical condition.  If the driver survives his injuries, FHP says he may be cited and could possibly have his commercial driver's license suspended.