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A hostage situation in central Illinois kept Amtrak travelers in Carbondale at bay Thursday. The train route runs close to a bank where a gunman, who shot a sheriff's deputy, was holed up.

Two buses came to Carbondale from Mount Vernon to take the 75 passengers to Chicago, station agent Alan Diedrick said.

The standoff at the First Mid-Illinois Bank and Trust in Arcola ended about 6 p.m. Five hostages were taken in the morning, but the suspect released all of them except a male bank employee until he surrended to authorities in the evening. No hostages were injured.

Diedrick said the Carbondale Amtrak station received a call from police about 2 p.m. ordering the station to halt traffic. Amtrak's line runs about 500 feet from the bank in Arcola, located about 25 miles south of Champaign.

Amtrak called the Mount Vernon-based Beck Bus Service to transport passengers to Chicago. The buses left Carbondale and were expected to arrive in Chicago at 11 p.m. The original estimated arrival time for the train was 9:35 p.m.

According to news reports, the shooting occurred Thursday morning on a county road about 10 miles from the bank.

Chief Deputy Tommy Martin was shot in the face and the torso as he attempted to stop a van stolen by two men. The driver, who police identified as 23-year-old Kareem Brown, was taken into custody but he has not yet been charged.

The driver and the shooting suspect led police on a chase that featured speeds of more than 100 mph. The driver eventually lost control in Arcola and the two suspects fled. The gunman entered the bank, where the hostage situation developed.

Martin was listed in critical condition and was expected to remain overnight at the Carle Foundation Hospital in Urbana.

Diedrick said Amtrak passengers in Carbondale handled the delay well before the buses arrived.

"When it's something this serious, people tend to understand," he said. "Now if it's a minor deal like a breakdown or something, then they usually get angry.

Daily Egyptian reporter Brian Feldt and the Associated Press contributed to this article.

Brandon Weisenberger can be reached at 536-3311 ext. 262 or brandonw@siude.com.

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