Man Killed on Millburn Train Tracks

updated: Nov. 17, see addendum at the bottom of the story.

A man died after being struck by a NJ Transit train at the Millburn station around 6 p.m., authorities confirmed.

According to witnesses, the man was apparently on the tracks when a train struck him.

NJ Transit spokeswoman Penny Bassett Hackett said the train that struck the man was not carrying passengers and was on its way to New York's Penn Station. The incident caused delays up to an hour during the evening commute on the Morris/Essex line and also closed the station to one track.

Bassett Hackett said they had not yet identified the man and that NJ Transit police were investigating the death. She said only the state Medical Examiner could determine if it was a suicide or accident.

Eyewitnesses said the train that hit the man was a train that was not scheduled to stop at the station and said the man appeared to be praying just before the incident.

Deborah Dixon, a Manhattan resident who has worked in Millburn for 25 years, was one of the people on who saw the train hit the man.

"I first thought he tripped on the tracks but then he stretched out and dove into it," she said, crying. "It looked like he timed it so that the train could not stop. It was horrible. That image is going to stay with me for a long time."

Living in New York City, Dixon is accustomed to seeing people trip on train tracks or subway tracks and getting helped back up but this time, she said, "There was no way to help him. There was nothing anyone could have done. It was that quick."

Update Nov. 17: As of Thursday, neither the Medical Examiner's Officer or NJ Transit had identified the man, said John Durso with NJ Transit. The case is still under investigation, he said.

See for more information.

Elizabeth Moore contributed to this report.

This is a breaking story and Patch will update it as soon as more information becomes available.