Classmates of boy killed by train offered grief help

Grief counselors were on hand Monday at the school attended by a 13-year-old boy who was hit and killed by a SunRail train in Sanford last week.

Police say Marcees Kilpatrick, 13, was about to cross the train tracks about 5:45 p.m. Friday when he was clipped by the side of the SunRail train.

He was pronounced dead at the scene.

Counselors will be available for as long as his classmates at Markham Woods Middle School need help, officials at the Lake Mary-area school said.

“As you may know, our school has experienced the death of a student that has affected our school community deeply,” Principal Byron Durias wrote in a letter to parents. “We have implemented a plan for responding to this tragic event to help our students, staff and families conclude the school year on the best terms possible, given time.”

The last day of school is Friday.

The accident happened at Dixie Way and Historic Goldsboro Boulevard, across from Crooms Academy of Information Technology, near where Marcees lived.

The state is considering adding a fence there to prevent people from cutting through on foot, a spokesman for the Florida Department of Transportation said. this difficult At least one no-trespassing sign already is posted.

The speed limit for passenger trains is 60 mph in that area.

The school Saturday sent out a series of tweets about the death.

“We ask you to please keep the family [and] those who knew the student in your thoughts and prayers,” the school tweeted.

None of the roughly 60 passengers on the train was injured. They were taken by bus to other stations as authorities investigated.