(Lakota)--Two male juveniles are hospitalized after a fiery car-train accident Tuesday afternoon in northern Kossuth County.

According to a news release from the Kossuth County Sheriff’s Office, shortly before 3:55 pm, a 911 call reported a vehicle had collided with a train about a quarter mile south of Highway 9 on 190th Avenue,  a secondary gravel road located on the very northeast corner of Lakota.

Law Enforcement, EMS, Fire and Emergency Management agencies responded to the scene. The news release says a 2004 Chevy Impala, occupied by a 16-year-old male driver and a 12- year-old male passenger, both from the Lakota/Buffalo Center area, were southbound on 190th Avenue and struck an eastbound Union Pacific train. The vehicle came to a stop a short distance to the east of the crossing and the train initiated an emergency stop.

A motorist passing by on Highway 9, Alex Horak of Lakota, saw the collision and immediately called 911. Within a minute of witnessing the collision, Horak saw the Chevy Impala start on fire with the two occupants still inside the vehicle. The news release says Horak took immediate and decisive action pulling both occupants out of the vehicle to safety. The vehicle became fully engulfed in flames just a few feet from railcars loaded with ethanol.

Firefighters from the Swea City, Ledyard and Lakota Fire Departments arrived and

extinguished the fire. Kossuth County EMS and Lakota EMS arrived on the scene and initiated Auto-Launch. Air Care out of Waterloo responded to the scene and the 16-year-old driver was flown to Rochester. Lakota EMS transported the 12-year-old to the Kossuth County Regional Health Center launch pad in Algona where Air Med 2 out of Des Moines flew him to Rochester. Both boys suffered head and upper body injuries and are currently at St. Mary's Hospital in Rochester.

The accident remains under investigation.