Crews on the scene of a fatal incident on the railroad tracks in Biddeford on Sunday. Shawn Patrick Ouellette/Staff Photographer
The two people who died on the railroad tracks in a Biddeford residential neighborhood Sunday were in their early 20s and had no known address, police said Wednesday.
Richard Martello, 24, and Shawnia Maffiola, 23, were lying on the tracks when the Downeaster train approached, according to Amtrak-owned surveillance video police reviewed after the incident. They were not from Biddeford and police said they were half siblings.
Officers also said that they died by suicide.
The Amtrak video is not available for media or public review, but Biddeford Chief of Police Roger Beaupre shared details of the footage Monday morning, saying the pair sat up to hug before they were struck by the train.
Police said they notified relatives in Massachusetts and Indiana of the deaths late Tuesday afternoon.
The incident caused significant delays to the Downeaster’s schedule Sunday. About 80 passengers on the train that struck Martello and Maffiola were stuck in Biddeford for about an hour and a half before they were placed on a bus to another northbound train to Brunswick.
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