A truck and train crash in Flora earlier this week is a painful reminder of just how dangerous railroad crossings can be.

And in Brookhaven, there’s no shortage of crossings. It’s not uncommon to see vehicles driving around the automatic barriers that come down as a train approaches. We regularly see pedestrians hopping across the tracks as a train nears.

In a city where trains are an everyday part of residents’ lives, it’s easy to become too comfortable with them. But we should always respect the danger they pose.

Madison County Coroner Alex Breeland said Thursday that 35-year-old Michael Ray Allen Jr., his 1-year-old son Michael Ray Allen III and stepdaughter 7-year-old Mikilah West died instantly of blunt-force trauma Wednesday night when their pickup truck and an Amtrak train collided.

Amtrak spokeswoman Christina Leeds said the Chicago-bound train hit the vehicle Wednesday evening in Flora, about 25 miles northwest of Jackson, the Associated Press reported.

Leeds says no train crew members or passengers were injured.

Also Wednesday, the Florida Highway Patrol said an Amtrak train struck and killed a person in the central part of the state. An incident report says the engineer was alerted to the man on the tracks but couldn’t stop in time, AP reported

That’s the scary part about trains. Even if the engineer sees a pedestrian or vehicle on the tracks, the enormous weight of a train often prevents it from stopping in time.

Because of their size, trains appear to be moving slowly, when in fact they usually aren’t. Also, when something is moving directly toward you, it’s hard to judge how far away it is. Those optical illusions make trains that much more dangerous.

When in doubt about an approaching train’s speed or distance, it’s always best to wait.