(The following story by Frank Warner appeared on The Morning Call website on October 5, 2010.)
ALLENTOWN, Penn. — Allentown police searching for a confused man along the railroad tracks on Monday night feared an approaching Norfolk Southern train might hit the man, and asked that the train avoid the area.
But at 10:15 p.m., the railroad company said a train already was on its way, and it could not stop.
“Norfolk Southern has a westbound train it can’t stop, but it will slow the train down,” a police dispatcher radioed officers searching the woods along Constitution Drive, south of the Lehigh River.
The train rolled through at about 10:30 p.m. without incident.
Police were looking for a 24-year-old man who had suffered a brain injury in the past, city police Capt. Stephen Mould said.
Police had searched up and down the steep, wet hills near the railroad. Officials could not be reached to determine whether the man was found later Monday or early Tuesday.