Metro-North Tragedy: Met Museum Curator and Financial Trader Among Crash Victims
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Metropolitan Museum of Art | Mesirow Financial(VALHALLA, N.Y.) — A financial trader and a curator at the Metropolitan Museum of Art have been identified as two of the five passengers who died in Tuesday night’s train crash in suburban New York.
Eric Vandercar and Walter Liedtke’s deaths were confirmed by their companies on Wednesday.
Relatives of the victims were sent to the county medical examiner’s office Wednesday morning to confirm the identities.
Vandercar, a married 53-year-old father, worked as a senior managing director in the New York office of Mesirow Financial.
“Eric was not only a pillar in our industry, he was a great partner and friend to many. Losing him is a huge loss, personally and professionally,” the company said in a statement released to ABC News.
The Metropolitan Museum of Art confirmed Liedtke’s death, saying that they were “deeply saddened by this tragic loss.”
“Walter Liedtke was a brilliant, respected curator and scholar of Dutch and Flemish paintings who was part of the Met family for 35 years,” the statement said. “He will long be remembered for his vast knowledge, his wit, and a passion for art that inspired all who came in contact with him.”
The mayor of New Castle, N.Y., identified 42-year-old Joseph Nadol and 36-year-old Robert Dirks as victims in the crash. The fifth victim, 41-year-old Aditya Tomar, was identified by the mayor of Danbury, Connecticut, to ABC News affiliate WABC-TV.
All five of the passengers who died were seated in the first car of the Metro-North train when it crashed into a Mercedes SUV that was on the tracks Tuesday.
The driver of the SUV was also killed in the crash and ensuing explosion. She has been identified as Ellen Brody, a mother of three who worked at a nearby jewelry store.
The National Transportation Safety Board has taken over the investigation into the crash, which was the most fatal in Metro-North’s history.
The investigation is expected to take nearly a week, and crews were seen starting to move the train and SUV from the crash site early Wednesday evening.
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