MIDLAND, Texas (AP) — Residents have gathered for a vigil in a West Texas town where a train crashed into a parade float this week, killing four war veterans.

About 300 people attended the event in downtown Midland. They lit white candles and prayed for the victims' families and the community as a whole. The town square was lined with American flags.

Mayor Wes Perry told the crowd that "the next few days will be tough but when we get to the other side, it will be better."

Ministers prayed for the community to have strength in wake of the tragedy.

City Manager Courtney Sharp says Midland is "grieving and in pain."

The Iraq and Afghanistan war veterans were killed Thursday when a freight train slammed into the float. Sixteen people were injured.