Train kills woman driver stuck on icy level crossing

A woman driver was killed today after desperately trying to reverse her car out of the path of a train, police said.

The 30-year-old was driving across an icy level-crossing in South Drove, near Spalding, Lincolnshire, when her car clipped a Ford Transit van heading in the opposite direction.

Lincolnshire Police said the crash left the woman, who is from Spalding, stranded on the remote level-crossing as the barriers came down.

Moments later, the 8.33am Peterborough to Lincoln service struck the grey Rover 216, with the unnamed woman still at the wheel, desperately trying to drive her car to safety.

Sergeant Dave Kay said at the scene: "She was making frantic attempts to get off the level-crossing but witnesses said it was very, very quick from when the barriers came down to the collision.

"She was trying to get her car off the level-crossing but because of the arctic conditions it was like a skating rink and she couldn't get very far."

Police said the accident happened shortly before 9am today and involved a train operated by East Midlands Trains.

The van's driver managed to steer it off the crossing at West Road following the initial accident. He, along with one of his passengers, then tried to reach the woman before she was killed.

A spokeswoman for East Midlands Trains said none of the train's 18 passengers were hurt but that it was 11am before an engineer allowed the train to make the short journey to Spalding station.

From Spalding, passengers were taken to Lincoln by bus. Network Rail said the train was not derailed and was only slightly damaged.

It added that trains were terminating at Sleaford in Lincolnshire while the incident was being investigated.

The road is currently closed, police said. The train's driver was badly shaken, officers added.