(The following story by Kim Sloan appeared on the Rome News-Tribune website on June 29, 2010.)
ROME, Ga. — A shaded train trestle may seem like a nice place to sit and fish, but not only is it against the law to trespass on that trestle, it could also be deadly.
According to railroad safety organization Operation Lifesaver, more people are killed trespassing on the railroads than are killed in vehicle-train collisions. In 2009, the group said, 434 people in the United States died on the tracks while 248 were killed in vehicle-train collisions. In Georgia, 10 people died on train tracks, and six people died in collisions.
Joey Shirley and his dog Smoke are special agents for Norfolk Southern, covering Floyd and several other counties in Northwest Georgia. Shirley’s job includes making sure that trespassers stay off the tracks.
“We are not out there to arrest everyone on the tracks,” Shirley said. “If I get a trespasser call, I can’t immediately arrest them. They have to be prior warned before we can arrest them.”
It is a safety issue, Shirley said, especially if they are on the train trestles, where it is not easy to flee an approaching train.
“There is not a sidewalk or a place for anyone to pull aside,” Shirley said. “It’s a chance they don’t want to take.”
Train tracks are considered private property, and anyone who is found loitering on them could be charged with criminal trespass.
Railroad officials say they see more people on the train tracks during the summer. Trespassers are usually spotted on the tracks by engineers.
Most of the calls for Shirley and Smoke are for trespassing and stolen items, but the dog is also trained in explosive detection.
The transportation industry is considered a terrorist target and Norfolk Southern works closely with the Transportation Safety Administration, said spokeswoman Susan Terpay.
“You have to take into account some of the materials we ship,” Terpay said. “We haul things that are used from paint to lumber to automobiles, everything you can find at Home Depot or Walmart, and those are classified as hazardous materials.”
Smoke and Shirley completed their training together in May. The dogs are trained in situations they may encounter on the job, including building searches, water obstacles and running over logs.
During the four-week training, the dogs and their partners often work 12 to 14 hours per day.
Smoke is Shirley’s second partner. His former dog, Muis, was diagnosed with terminal cancer last year and was euthanized.
Shirley is featured in the current edition of Norfolk Southern’s corporate magazine. In the article, police director Al Shackleford talks about Muis’ last ride. A convoy of police officers from around the area escorted Shirley and Muis to the veterinarian’s office where he was euthanized.
Muis and another police dog, Devil, are expected to be memorialized at Norfolk Southern’s police headquarters in Atlanta. Devil died after he was hit by a train while chasing burglary suspects.
Read more: RN-T.com – Cop and canine keep railways safe in Northwest Georgia