Four killed in car-train crash in S.C.

Crews worked almost three hours Monday night before being able to detach a car from an Amtrak train in South Carolina.

STORY HIGHLIGHTS

Amtrak train hits car near South Carolina-Georgia state line
Car apparently tried to beat train across tracks, official says
Four killed in car, including 12-year-old
No train passengers injured, official says

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(CNN) -- Four people, including a 12-year-old, died when an Amtrak train hit their car in Hardeeville, South Carolina, an official said Tuesday.

The accident occurred Monday night near the South Carolina-Georgia state line, not far from the intersection of South Carolina 46 and U.S. 17.

"It appears that the vehicle tried to go around the gate arms ... to beat the train across the tracks," said Ted Felder, Hardeeville's interim city manager.

The Jasper County, South Carolina, coroner has not released the names of the dead.

The car became wedged onto the front of the southbound train, which pushed it for a mile down the track, Felder said. The Hardeeville Fire Department received a call shortly before 9 p.m. ET Monday, but teams from various agencies reportedly were unable to detach the car until about midnight.

Felder said no one on the train was injured, and once the car was detached, a bus took passengers to the Amtrak station in Savannah, Georgia.

The train was en route from Charleston, South Carolina, to Savannah when the crash occurred.