TUCSON, Ariz. — Two men were killed Wednesday when the train they were riding atop went under a South Side bridge, the Arizona Daily Star reports.
Tucson police were called to the Union Pacific rail yard, off Aviation Parkway between East 22nd Street and East 36th Street, at 9:20 a.m., after railroad workers noticed a large amount of blood on the side of a car and found a man’s body on top of it, said Sgt. Marco Borboa.
Another Union Pacific employee spotted the body of the other man near the bridge at Interstate 10 between South Park and South Sixth avenues about 20 minutes later, Borboa said. Police originally were investigating that man’s death as a homicide, he said, until they found two hats atop the train and connected the deaths.
Investigators believe both men exited the rail car through a top hatch as it neared the bridge but did not see the 23-foot overhang because it was dark. The train was slowing down as it neared the bridge and investigators suspect the men wanted to see what was happening.
Borboa said neither man carried identification and authorities believe they may have been Mexican citizens. Investigators are working with the Mexican Consulate to try to locate families of the men, one of whom appeared to be in his late teens and the other in his late 20s, Borboa said.
He said the men suffered serious head injuries and most likely died instantly. Mike Furtney, Union Pacific Railroad spokesman, said the train originated in Hermosillo.