Accident victim and two rescuers nearly hit by Metrolink train
A truck became stuck on railroad tracks at a crossing after an accident earlier today. Two firefighters came on scene to rescue the man, when the crossing gates began coming down, signaling an approaching train. The firefighters, who were holding the head of the injured man, had to rush him off the tracks, narrowly escaping the approaching Metrolink train by seconds, after which it crushed the truck.
According to a fire department spokeswoman, the firefighters were following standard procedure and had notified the dispatch center, instructing them to call railroad officials, who supposedly should have stopped running trains along that stretch of track. Sgt. Ron Whitney, however claims that they tried getting a hold of the railroad, but “for some reason” couldn’t.
Though it was a Metrolink train, the stretch of tracks is owned by Union Pacific.
The victim and rescuers narrowly escaped – and apparently no one has any explanation except for, well, “some reason”. If you think that shouldn’t hold water when three individuals nearly lost their lives, you’re probably outraged by this incident. Hopefully the matter will be investigated for what is potentially either a massive failure of the communication network or a complete failure by one entity or another to respond to an emergency situation. In either case, this is quite alarming.
