MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, Fla. – Niurka Cardenas was driving when she stopped on the train tracks near Barnes Park in Miami-Dade County. She said a railroad crossing boom gate descended and she was trapped.
As the train approached, she said she had no choice but to jump out of the car and run. A video shows her getting out of the car to barely miss the impact.
The car and the train collided near the intersection of Southwest 72nd Avenue and Southwest 39th Street.
"I am relieved to be alive," Cardenas said in Spanish after the Friday afternoon scare.
Miami-Dade Fire Rescue personnel responded, but she wasn't injured. Her mangled car did need to be towed.
"I have been here five years, and I have never seen anything like that happen before," said Stephanie Navarro, who lives near the train crossing.
Miami-Dade Police Department officers said it is unclear if Cardenas will be cited.