(Operation Lifesaver Inc. issued the following news release on July 26.)
OVERLAND PARK, Kan. — America’s rail safety organization, Operation Lifesaver, comes to Black & Veatch’s corporate headquarters here to share information about safety education, engineering and enforcement with highway rail safety participants from two regions — the Central Midwest and South Central.
Black & Veatch is a leader in global construction, industrial and transportation safety specializing in infrastructure development in the fields of energy, water and information. One of Kansas City’s largest employers, the company will host Operation Lifesaver at its Ruisch Auditorium and Training Center, 11401 Lamar “P” Building. Selection of this site for OL’s four-day meeting grew out of the company’s long-standing support and service to public safety. Operation Lifesaver is a 31-year-old non-profit rail safety organization, headquartered in Alexandria, Virginia.
“The Super Regional draws participants to discuss successful approaches to rail safety — so we can repeat these programs in other parts of the country,” Gerri Hall, Operation Lifesaver President, said. Participants are expected from Texas, Oklahoma, New Mexico, Arkansas, Louisiana, Nebraska, Colorado, and Iowa as well as Missouri and Kansas — Regions 5 & 6 for Operation Lifesaver and the Federal Railroad Administration.
Kansas City Royals broadcaster Denny Matthews, the primary Royals broadcaster since the team joined the major leagues in 1969, has taped a public service announcement to support Operation Lifesaver’s mission and will be in attendance at the workshop on Tuesday, July 29. Matthews is the grandson of a locomotive engineer and lifelong railroad enthusiast.
Operation Lifesaver, a national nonprofit organization dedicated to the elimination of collisions, deaths and injuries at highway-rail intersections and rail rights-of-way, began in 1972 in Idaho. The rail safety program in Kansas began two years later, involving law enforcement, school bus drivers and railroad employees. The Federal Highway Administration has credited Operation Lifesaver with helping save 10,000 lives and preventing 54,000 injuries with its safety message.