Brother and sister on way to work killed in Brightline crash in Aventura, police say
A 68-year-old man and his sister, whom he was driving to work, were killed in last week’s Brightline crash at the Broward and Miami-Dade border, Aventura police said Monday.
Marc Charleus had picked up his sister Veronique Charleus, 58, from North Miami and they were heading to her job in Hallandale Beach. On the way, they approached the railroad crossing on East Dixie Highway near Northeast 214th Street around 6 a.m. Thursday, Dec. 30, police said.
Police said the safety gates were in the down position. Instead of stopping, Marc Charleus attempted to drive across the railroad tracks, police said. It was a deadly decision.
A Brightline train struck their blue Toyota, killing them. Surveillance video obtained by the Miami Herald shows the collision, which left the car mangled. Brightline said no one on the train was injured.
“This was a tragic event and the direct result of an individual driving around the gates which were down, flashing and bells ringing, signaling an approaching train,” a Brightline spokesman told the Miami Herald in an email last week.
Just hours earlier, a white Tesla had collided with a Brightline near Lantana in Palm Beach County. The three people inside the Tesla were taken to the hospital, their condition unknown, according to the Palm Beach Post.
Thursday’s crashes are the latest involving a Brightline train in South Florida since the service resumed in November after a 19-month pandemic hiatus. At least two other fatal crashes in South Florida happened in December. One involved a pedestrian in North Miami Beach, the other a pedestrian who died by suicide in Hollywood.
As a reminder, drivers should never drive around the gates or ignore the flashing lights at railroad crossings. These are signs that a train is nearing the crossing and you should never try to be at the train, especially a Brightline. It’s a high speed train servicing West Palm Beach to Miami that travels at 79 mph.
This story was originally published January 3, 2022 at 1:48 PM.
