Driver killed in collision with trail near Deerfield identified

A man who died after a collision between his vehicle and a train last week near the Lake-Cook Metra station in Deerfield has been identified, officials said.

The driver was Peter Hoogheen, 60, whose address is unknown, the Cook County Medical Examiner's Office said Monday.

Northbrook Fire Chief Andy Carlson said the fire department received a call about the collision at about 6:50 p.m. Feb. 10.

He said the preliminary investigation indicated a passenger vehicle had ended up on the tracks near the Lake Cook Metra station. There is no crossing at that station, though there is a commuter parking lot.

The vehicle was hit by a southbound Amtrak train, Carlson said, and dragged around 300 yards until falling off on the west side of the train tracks.

Upon the Northbrook Fire Department's arrival, the vehicle was engulfed in flames, Carlson said, and the driver, who was alone in the car, was pronounced dead at the scene.

Along with the Northbrook Fire Department, Illinois State Police, and the Deerfield, Metra and the Canadian Pacific Railway police departments were investigating the collision, Carlson said.

A Metra spokesperson said the vehicle, a pickup truck, had either been stuck on the tracks just south of the station or had been overtaken by Amtrak train No. 340 traveling from Milwaukee to Chicago.

Amtrak spokesman Marc Magliari said the access road near the collision, under the Edens Spur had been marked with No Trespassing signs.

He said no passengers or crew of train No. 340 were injured. After a delay, a Metra train took passengers to the remaining two stops to Chicago.