(The following article by Stan Maddux and Jim Meenan was posted on the South Bend Tribune website on November 13.)
WANATAH, Ind. — A Three Oaks man was killed and a New Carlisle man was injured Wednesday morning when two dump trucks drove into a moving freight train in dense fog causing a derailment near Wanatah.
“When I responded to the call the fog was so thick, you probably couldn’t see 50 feet in front of you,” said Cass-Clinton Township Volunteer Fire Department Lt. Jeff Mitzner, who was among the first to arrive at the Norfolk Southern crossing on U.S. 421.
Killed was Ben Ackerman, 50, of the 5200 block of West Spring Creek Road in Three Oaks.
Ackerman was pronounced dead at the scene from severe head injuries by LaPorte County Deputy Coroner John Sullivan.
He was not wearing a seat belt and was ejected, Sullivan said.
Glenn Kenfield III, of the 300 block of West Front Street in New Carlisle, was the other driver.
He was treated and released from Porter Memorial Hospital in Valparaiso, Ind., Sullivan said.
Sullivan said he didn’t know the total extent of Kenfield’s injuries.
Whether Kenfield was using a safety restraint hasn’t been determined, police said.
According to the LaPorte County Sheriff’s Department, both men were in separate dump trucks owned by New Carlisle-based K-Fex Excavating and Trucking.
They were headed to a rock quarry in Francesville to pick up a load of gravel when they approached the crossing on U.S. 421 at County Road 1400 South about 7 a.m., police said.
Because of the thick fog, Ackerman apparently didn’t see the flashing lights and the gates that were down, police said.
He crashed through a crossing arm and rammed into the side of the second locomotive, said LaPorte County police officer Andy Hynek, the lead investigator of the accident.
“I’m sure he didn’t see the gates on time. They were functioning properly,” LaPorte County police Sgt. Roger Bernard said.
Seeing Ackerman slam into the train, the 31-year-old Kenfield locked up his brakes and hit the second freight car, Hynek said.
Kenfield was out of the vehicle and walking around when police first arrived.
“He was obviously shaken up,” said Hynek said.
Nearly a dozen of the train’s containers broke open spilling numerous bottles of liquor and industrial-sized rolls of cardboard type paper, said Hynek.
“There were broken bottles everywhere,” Hynek said.
There were no hazardous chemicals on the train, which was headed to Chicago from Fort Wayne, Hynek said.
U.S. 421 from U.S. 30 to Indiana 8 was expected to remain closed until sometime today when repairs to the crossing are expected to be completed, police said.
It will be several days before County Road 1400 South reopens because of the wreckage that has to be removed from the road’s surface and the adjacent field, said Hynek.
Although police said the train was pulling 42 cars and 30 to 35 derailed, Norfolk Southern spokesman Rudy Husband gave a lower count.
Husband said the train carried 37 cars with nine derailing.
That’s because some of the cars actually contained as many as five containers giving the impression that more cars were on the train, Husband said.
Ackerman was remembered as a good, churchgoing man by a family member Wednesday.
“He was a good person, willing to help out anybody who needed to be helped out,” said Dawn Ackerman, who is married to Rollie Ackerman, Ben Ackerman’s brother.
“He was very involved with mission projects at the church. He has been to Mexico a few times on missions, and they have taken in a few exchange students.”
The funeral will be at 2 p.m. Sunday at the Wings of Faith Church in the North Village Mall at 52565 Indiana 933 North in South Bend at 2 p.m.
A visitation will be held Saturday from 2 to 7 p.m. at Pobocik Funeral Home Connelly-Noble Chapel in Three Oaks.