A police vehicle was struck by a train in South Richmond Monday evening as authorities responded to a call for a suicidal woman on a train trestle over the James River, according to the Richmond Police Department.

The incident led to rush-hour traffic problems due to the closure of Forest Hill Avenue and the southbound exit ramp off the Powhite Parkway. The Richmond Police vehicle was struck around 5:10 p.m., officials said, and the road closures lasted until about 9 p.m.

No one was hurt in the collision. Police and railroad personnel safely led the woman off the bridge, according to RPD.

The woman was on the CSX train trestle crossing the river near Riverside Drive and Breckenridge Road, according to police. 

In the scramble to respond, an RPD officer parked his vehicle close enough to a different set of tracks that it was struck by an approaching Norfolk Southern freight train.

The vehicle was parked in a gravel area near where Forest Hill crosses the parkway, “but a portion of the vehicle was overlapping the track,” according to RPD.

“The officer walked down the Norfolk Southern track to attempt to assist the officers and the suicidal party, not aware that the suicidal party call was on the CSX track and his vehicle was parked adjacent to the Norfolk Southern line,” RPD said in a release.

Contact Reporter Graham Moomaw at gmoomaw@richmonder.org