Man fatally struck by Metro train after falling off station platform in South LA

JEFFERSON PARK, LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- A pedestrian was struck and killed by a Metro train in the Jefferson Park area of South Los Angeles early Wednesday, causing significant train delays during the morning commute.

Los Angeles police officers responded to the Farmdale station, located near Exposition Boulevard and Farmdale Avenue, around 1 a.m. and located the victim, who was struck by an Expo Line train headed to downtown Los Angeles, officials said.

The victim, only identified as a man in his 40s, was alone on the platform when he fell backward onto the track and was struck by the train, police said. It is unclear what led up to the fall.

The train that struck the victim did not stop because the conductor did not realize the train hit a person. About 10 minutes later, second train spotted the body on the tracks and stopped, according to authorities.

Train service was fully restored by late morning after severely impacting Metro's train schedule while single tracking during the investigation.

City News Service contributed to this report.