No one on the train was injured.
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The Amtrak train collided with the auto in Las Animas County at around 9.45am on Sunday morning, after the driver of the people carrier “failed to yield right of way” to the train, according to a statement by the Colorado State Patrol.
Steve and Christina Miller, 32 and 33, were killed in the crash, which friends said when they were taking their family to church..
Police said the family’s Chrysler mini-van failed to give way to the Amtrak train and the train was unable to stop.
The Denver Post reports that the spokeswoman says the Southwest Chief train, which travels between Chicago and Los Angeles, resumed its route at 5 p.m.
A 4-year-old girl was the only member of her family to survive after their minivan was hit by an Amtrak train at a crossing with a history of problems in southern Colorado.
Relatives, who are with Heidi in hospital, told CBS she is “awake and asking for her mother” but they did not know how to explain what had happened.
The Millers were on their way to church at the time.
Keith Schlabach, Christina’s cousin, told the Denver Post, “When they didn’t show up for church, we were anxious about what was going on”.
Authorities said there was no suspicion of drug or alcohol use being involved in the accident.
“Most of us went out to the scene, waiting to hear for sure if it was them or not”.
The train crossing is marked only by signs, but a proposal to add flashing lights and gates has been in discussion since 2013, according to The Denver Post.
An Amtrak train on Sunday collided with a van near Trinidad, killing five people, including three children.
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The family is asking for funds to help with medical costs and funeral expenses.
