Woman killed in Thornton train collision
THORNTON — A Woodbridge woman was killed in a train collision late Friday night after her car became stuck on the tracks.
Union Pacific Railroad said a westbound BNSF Railway train collided with a vehicle near West Woodbridge Road, west of North Ray Road.
The railroad said the San Joaquin County Sheriff's Office, California Highway Patrol and BNSF Railway Police were notified of the collision.
The Thornton Rural Fire District said the warning bars at the crossing were down at the time of the collision, and that the vehicle was facing south when the train struck from behind.
Woodbridge Road travels east and west, and the tracks travel north and south.
The impact pushed the vehicle off the tracks and down an embankment, the fire district said.
The San Joaquin County Sheriff's Office and Coroner identified the driver as 60-year-old Joaney Kolp of Woodbridge.
Kolp’s sister, Lauren Ellison, described her as a wonderful sister, mother and grandmother who loved animals and the beauty of the Lodi and Woodbridge area.
She said her sister left behind two sons in Petaluma and a daughter in Pennsylvania. A San Francisco native, Kolp had moved from the Bay Area to the Woodbridge area two years ago, Ellison said.
She added the family has several questions about the collision that remain unanswered by authorities.
“We’re wondering if the alarm system, the arms and everything, were in working order,” Ellison said. “How could she not have seen or heard anything?”
She said it is unknown why her sister was traveling on such a dark road on a late Friday night.
“Joaney had tenants living in an RV on her property,” Ellison said. “When (authorities) told the people living in the property about what had happened, they thought she was in bed inside her house.”
A spokesperson for BNSF did not respond for comment.