Three people died in train and subway accidents in the New York City area on Thursday and a fourth died in a Philadelphia train accident in what authorities describe as a freakishly deadly day for commuter accidents in the Northeast.

By comparison, 14 people died in New York City subway or train accidents during all of 2008, according to city statistics.

A 48-year-old former attorney for the state was killed in a New York City subway accident on the Upper East Side, the New York Times reported.

The woman reportedly jumped onto the tracks at East 77th Street and Lexington Avenue at about 3:45 p.m. Thursday to retrieve a shoulder bag. A northbound 6 train ran her over before she could get back up on the platform.

The victim was a graduate of New York University Law School and worked until two years ago in the state court's Division of Continuing Legal Education, according to the Daily News.

She reportedly tried to press herself between the train and the wall but was pinned in and died as a result of her injuries.

-A person was struck and killed in Mercer County, New Jersey on Thursday morning when Amtrak's Keystone 642 train struck a pedestrian near Hamilton Township station, the Associated Press reported.

The train had 251 passengers on board and was headed for New York.

-On Thursday evening, a man was struck and killed by a New Jersey Transit commuter train near East Orange station. The Morris and Essex Line commuter train was carrying 900 passengers at the time of the accident.

-A fourth fatality resulted from a train accident in the Northeast, when a victim was struck and killed about 9:15 p..m. by a Northeast Regional train in Philadelphia, according to Amtrak.