(Wapato, Washington – December 6, 2025)
A tragic collision between a pickup truck and a BNSF Railway freight train on Saturday, December 6, left two motorists dead. The crash occurred in the afternoon, at approximately 3:43 p.m., on Donald Road and North Wapato Avenue in Wapato, WA.
The driver, age 29, and the passenger, 32, were of Wapato and remain unnamed. The two men were travelling southwest on Donald Rd in their Ford Ranger when they came into the path of the southbound BNSF train. According to the Washington State Patrol, the two victims were declared deceased at the scene. In the aftermath of the collision, the WSP fully closed the intersection and nearby roads to traffic in efforts to clear the wreckage and further their investigation.
Per BNSF’s submitted information to the Federal Railroad Administration, the BNSF crossing where the accident occurred sees an average of 7 trains, traveling at speeds of up to 49 miles per hour, throughout the day and night. The crossing is equipped with two 2-quad gates, lights, and bells. It is unclear if the lights and gates were working at the time of the collision. Records for the crossing indicate that four other collisions have occurred there, with the most recent being just a year prior, and a second one occurring within the last ten years.
This crash comes two weeks after a 90-year-old woman was killed and her 92-year-old husband was injured in another train crash in Steilacoom, WA, and just over a week after two distinct motorist-train collisions occurred within 12 hours of one another in Cowlitz County.
The Washington State Patrol is continuing to investigate the case.