N.Y. Family Struck, Killed On Rail Tracks

SYRACUSE, N.Y. - An Amtrak train struck and killed a couple and their infant son earlier this week as the family walked along the railroad tracks after a shopping trip, authorities said.

Johanna Markovics, 19, and her 2-month-old baby, Vincent Thomas, died at the scene, a short distance from a shopping mall. The father, Nick Thomas Jr., 26, died later at a hospital.

The accident came minutes after the New York City-bound locomotive pulled away from the East Syracuse station, said Police Chief Frank Sardino.

It was traveling at about 60 mph. The engineer did not notice the people on the tracks until it was too late, Sardino said.

Authorities said the family from Rochester was visiting relatives in Liverpool, a suburb of Syracuse.