Minivan hit by train

A Union Pacific freight train slammed into a sport utility vehicle that had stopped at a crossing on Missouri 7 just north of the Lake City Army Ammunition plant Thursday evening .
The 82-year-old driver and a 99-year-old passenger were rushed to Centerpoint Medical Center.
Independence police had not yet released their names or place of residence late Thursday. However, the vehicle had Michigan license plates, according to police.
The passenger apparently wasn’t injured but was shaken up. He was taken by ambulance. The driver was taken by air ambulance and treated for unknown injuries not considered life-threatening, according to Independence police.
Around 5 p.m., the driver, a woman, was traveling south on Missouri 7.
The traffic arms were down and the lights were flashing. An eastbound train was approaching the crossing.
The vehicle went around the traffic arm and bent it, according to police, and pulled onto the tracks but not all the way.
“She then stops, but she was partially on the tracks,” Independence police spokesman Tom Gentry said.
The train smashed into the right front of the SUV. The impact shoved the vehicle onto a steep ditch on the east side of the highway, Gentry said. 
The train did not appear to be going full speed during impact. “The train did not invade the cab of the vehicle,” Gentry said.
Police blocked off Missouri 7 about one-quarter mile from the accident scene at the north and southbound sides.