A woman pushing a baby stroller was struck and killed by a train in Riverside, Southern California, on Saturday.

The unidentified mother was killed after 2 year-old daughter got caught in train tracks last night – but managed to save her child at the last minute by pushing her out of the way as a Metrolink commuter train in Southern California raged towards them.

In a final moment of heroism, the mother managed to free her child – but did not have enough time to get herself out of the way.

She was trying to walk through the Riverside crossing when the stroller became stuck in the tracks, police said.

The woman did not stop walking even though the arms of the crossing were down.

The woman pushing a baby stroller was struck and killed by a Metrolink passengers train in Riverside

Riverside police Sergeant Dan Warren said:

“She didn’t quite make it.”

“The baby’s fine, but she got hit.”

Sergeant Kendall Banks added:

“The arms were down, lights were going and she tried to cross anyway and the stroller got stuck and she didn’t make it.”

An eyewitness, Sandra Castillo was walking past the scene when she spotted the child alone in her stroller.

“All I did was get the baby – get her in the side walk,” Sandra Castillo told KTLA.

“Because I didn’t want her to get hit by other cars.

“I was like, did she just randomly come out of nowhere? Did she fall off the train? But no, her mum got run over.

“She tried to take her life to save her baby”.

Passengers said the train, which was going from Oceanside to San Bernardino, stopped after the collision as investigators were called.

Police and railroad officials continue to investigate the collision.

None of the 50 passengers on the train were injured.

The little girl was treated at a local hospital as a precaution and is now in the care of her grandmother.