Milton Ontario - A man and a woman from Halton were killed after being struck by a CP Rail freight train in a quiet, rural part of the town, near the border with Flamborough and Burlington.
 
Neighbours reported hearing the whistle on the train sounding repeatedly at about 17:30 Wednesday and knew something was up.
 
"It was blowing its whistle for a very long time," said Steve Morgan, who works at Wildhagen Greenhouses Adventure Gardens on Milburough Line, just beside the accident scene.
 
"We wondered why. Normally, it doesn't blow it that long."
 
Shortly after, he and his fellow workers heard the train brakes screeching.
 
"I never heard them sounding like that before," Morgan said.
 
"I've been here 20 years. We've never had an accident like that."
 
The collision happened on a curve of CP's Hamilton subdivision, just about 500 metres east of where Milburough meets Concession 10 East, and not very far from Carlisle.
 
The train was heading toward Hamilton from Guelph Junction.
 
Halton police had a four-door silver Buick taped off in a small parking area at Milburough and Concession 10, on the Milton side of the road.
 
"We believe it belongs to the deceased parties," said Inspector Anthony Odoardi.
 
Odoardi said Halton police were alerted to the collision by Hamilton police.
 
The Hamilton service had received a call from CP Rail indicating that two pedestrians on the tracks had been hit by a train.
 
Odoardi said the man and woman were from Halton, but wouldn't say more as next of kin had not been identified.
 
He said, however, foul play has been ruled out.
 
The incident is being investigated by the collision reconstruction unit.
 
Officers from the forensics unit and CP Rail police were also at the scene.
 
Police had Milburough closed between Concession 10 and Derry Road.
 
Diane MacKenzie, who lives kitty corner to the rail crossing, said she saw the car parked at about 16:00 when she went into Burlington on an errand.
 
She arrived home to see the train stopped on the tracks and just before emergency vehicles descended on the area.
 
MacKenzie said she often saw the car parked at the area directly across from her driveway.
 
She estimated the couple who emerged from it were in their 60s.
 
MacKenzie said people park and jog along Milburough Line, but she sees many come to just take walks along the railway tracks.
 
"It's an outing," she said, estimating about half a dozen trains a day use the line.
 
"I've seen so many cars parked over there and people coming and going."

Daniel Nolan.