(The following story by Reed S. Albers appeared on the Progress-Index website on July 21.)
PETERSBURG, Va. — Underestimating the power and size of a train can be a deadly mistake, and with three train-related deaths already in the Tri-Cities this year, efforts are underway to keep train deaths to a minimum.
“I spoke with an engineer today and he told me he had another close call in Waverly,” Operation Lifesaver’s Melvin Jones said recently. “He ran out of the bushes and the engineer had no time to react.”
Jones said the train safety advocacy group is committed to informing the public about the dangers and misconceptions of trains.
A common misconception with trains is that they move slowly, making them seem relatively harmless.
“[Trains] produce an optical illusion. We just don’t equate the size of a train as moving at over 60 miles per hour,” Jones said. “The weight ratio of a train to an car is proportional to a car and a soda can.”
While there have been no vehicle/train-related deaths in the Tri-Cities since 2005, the area is on pace to surpass last year’s total of six pedestrian train deaths.
More than 1,000 pedestrians were killed by trains in 2006 and 2007 in the U.S.
According to Jones, pedestrians are usually killed by trains when trespassing on railroad tracks.
“To be on train tracks at other than designated crossings is considered trespassing,” Jones said.
To help keep pedestrians off the tracks, a Virginia law calls for a fine of $250 for those caught trespassing on railroad tracks.
Despite the fine, Jones said many cut across train tracks as shortcuts to reach destinations.
“Shortcuts crossing tracks generally lead to shortcut lives,” he said.
All of the area’s train-related deaths have been listed as trespassing deaths.
This year’s fatalities began when Rebecca J. West, 56, was killed near the Ettrick Amtrak station in February. In April, Donald E. Kinney was killed by a train in Abingdon.
The most recent death occurred June 1 when 16-year-old Malcom Pezzano was killed by a train in Waverly.
“There has been several vehicles that have (been) driven into trains as well,” Jones said.
One of these incidents occurred June 22 when Christopher Fers, 23, was driving under the influence and wrecked onto railroad tracks in Chesterfield.
Fers exited the vehicle just before a southbound CSX train hit the car and carried it for half a mile before the train finally stopped.
Jones believes that these sort of accidents occur because of “bad judgement, bad choices.”
Why the area is currently experiencing a streak in train-related deaths and accidents is unclear. Jones believes one contributor is that the tracks are built closely to pedestrian areas, creating a higher risk for those who wish to trespass.
Statistically, the Tri-Cities are just part of a rising national trend.
According to the Federal Railroad Association’s database, as of April 29, there have been 375 train-related accidents resulting in an injury in the U.S. Some 183 pedestrians were killed by trains while trespassing so far this year.
The latest pedestrian death in Virginia occurred last week during a safety campaign. Authorities are investigating the death of a man who was struck by a Norfolk Southern train that was being used for a railroad safety program.
Roanoke police dentified the man as 63-year-old Loyd Patrick Martin, of no permanent address. Norfolk Southern spokeswoman Susan Terpey said the man was struck by a four-car train near an overpass as it rolled into a downtown Roanoke railyard about 10 p.m. Tuesday.
The train was to be used for Operation Lifesaver.
While the string of train-related deaths in Virginia is relatively recent, the state has been relatively safe over the past 10 years.
According to the FRA database, there have been only 91 deaths in the past 10 years, with 14 of those occurring in the Tri-Cities area.
The last time the state’s death-toll reached double digits was in 2003, when 13 people were killed by trains.
Despite the rising number of train deaths, Jones believes that Operation Lifesaver is making a difference.
“Operation Lifesaver has done a wonderful job in Virginia, we reach high schools and adult audiences,” he said.
While Operation Lifesaver is doing its part to help curb the amount of train-related deaths, Jones offers sage advice in the form of an easy-to-memorize slogan.
“Stay off, stay away, and stay alive,” he said.