A driver trying to outrun a police car crashed his vehicle into a train at a crossing along the Tenjin-Omuta Line in the town of Mizuma, Fukuoka Prefecture, Wednesday morning, local police said.
According to investigators, the first car of the four-car Nishi-Nippon Railroad Co. train derailed, and the automobile was dragged along for about 10 meters before bursting into flames after becoming jammed between the train and the platform of Inuzuka Station, adjacent to the grade crossing.
The two men in the car at the time sustained injuries, leaving one of them unconscious, police said. No one was on the platform at the time of the incident, which occurred around 10:25 a.m., and the roughly 30 people on the train were unhurt.
Police said the car was being pursued by an unmarked squad car after it was seen running a red light at an intersection about 2 km away. However, police lost sight of the vehicle after chasing it for about 1.5 km, they said.