Highway south of Augusta closed when truck slams into train

MCBEAN - A tractor-trailer truck driver died when he crashed into a train Wednesday. <br> <br> The accident shut down Highway 56 south of August for hours. <br> <br> The truck driver apparently swerved to miss two cars stopped at a rail crossing and slammed into the side of a Norfolk Southern train. <br> <br> Witnesses say the truck veered off Highway 56 into a grassy area, struck the freight train broadside and exploded. The two cars turned around and drove off. <br> <br> The truck driver was not immediately identified. <br> <br> Norfolk Southern spokeswoman Susan Terpay says the crash derailed 24 train cars, 19 of which overturned. <br> <br> The train had two locomotives and 85 rail cars and was headed to Macon from Linwood, North Carolina. <br> <br> Officials closed traffic both ways on the highway and said it may not reopen until late Thursday.