Driver killed by Metra train in Palatine

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Updated: January 29, 2012 8:08AM

A northwest suburban man was killed after the vehicle he was driving was struck by a Metra train in Palatine Tuesday morning.

Police identified the man as Michael Levgard, 64, of Palatine.

The accident happened about 7:30 a.m. at Brockway Street in Palatine when train No. 622 hit a car on the inbound tracks, Metra spokesman Michael Gillis said.

Police said the vehicle was traveling north on Brockway Street when it was struck by the train. The train dragged the vehicle 1,000 feet before coming to rest at Palatine Road.

It took crews 25 minutes to extricate the man from the vehicle, and he was dead at the scene, police said.

Police are looking into whether the man drove around lowered gates or whether the 1999 Mercury he was driving somehow got stuck on the tracks.

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