Brightline train death is third in past week
Fatalities have plagued company, but none yet blamed on equipment or crews
A woman was struck and killed by a Brightline train Monday in Fort Lauderdale, the second fatal train crash in about 48 hours in Broward County.
It’s at least the third death involving a Brightline train since service restarted from West Palm Beach to Miami in early November. Three people have died in South Florida in the past week.
Monday’s incident happened about 8 a.m. near 100 Northwest Sixth Street, in a pedestrian-heavy, Black community. The woman who was in her early 70s was for 220,000 customers in all or part of seven cities: Fort Lauderdale, Wilton Manors, Davie, Lauderdale-by-theSea, Oakland Park, Sea Ranch Lakes and Tamarac,
Medical Center where she died, said Steve Gollan, a Fort Lauderdale Fire Rescue battalion chief.
The previous deadly strike happened Saturday near Dixie Highway and Van Buren Street in Hollywood. Police said the man intentionally stepped in front of the fast-moving train.
A man walking on the tracks in North Miami Beach was killed Dec. 7, police said. The man did not move after the train horn sounded.
Brightline has stops in Miami, Fort Lauderdale and West Palm Beach. In densely populated areas, the plus Port Everglades.
It is not clear yet how much Florida Communications Concepts will be ordered to pay. The company and a subcontractor but can reach more than 125 mph in rural areas.
Deadly strikes have plagued the private train company since its first death during a test run, about five months before it officially opened in January 2018.
In December 2019, the Associated Press reported Brightline had the highest death rate among the nation’s 821 railroads with more than 40 deaths. After the report, the company created a public awareness campaign about the dangers of trying to beat a train and walking on or around the tracks.
Brightline service came to a halt at the start in pandemic. The company resumed operations last month under much fanfare — only to crash into a were held 98% responsible for the loss to businesses as a result of the need to shut down during the June 2019 crisis.
The lawsuit against the the train across the track. Miraculously, neither the woman who was driving nor her grandchild who was in the vehicle were killed.
Last year, Brightline acknowledged that more needs to be done to prevent deaths. On Monday, Vanessa Alfonso, a spokeswoman for Brightline, said the deadly encounters were very unfortunate.
“Safety is a topic that we will not stop talking about and we are asking the community, law enforcement, elected officials and members of the media to use their platforms and help amplify a consistent safety message: stay off the tracks and obey all warning signs,” the company said in a statement.
Brightline has installed contractor officially represented more than 9,000 businesses in a class action, including restaurants, law firms and retail stores.
Florida Power and Light, warn engineers if anyone is lurking near the tracks so they can slow down or stop. The company has added more fencing and landscaping to make track access more difficult and is also installing red-light cameras at crossings that will allow police to ticket drivers who go around guardrails. It is testing drones to monitor the tracks.
Alfonso did not answer numerous questions about the total deaths and mishaps since resuming operations Nov. 8, or questions regarding safety.
To date, none of the deaths involving Brightline have been blamed on its equipment or crews. Investigations showed most victims were either suicidal, intoxicated, mentally ill or
Rafael Olmeda can be reached at rolmeda@sunsentinel.com, 954-356-4457 or on Twitter @rolmeda at an intersection in an attempt to beat the trains.
While still just a South Florida passenger railway system, Brightline plans to have trains run between Miami and Orlando. Opposition against that formed years ago on the Treasure Coast.
“Our communities are too dense for this. We cannot handle these fast trains,” said Susan Mehiel, a coordinator for Florida Alliance for Safe Trains in Vero Beach.
Information from Associated Press was used in this report.
Eileen Kelley can be reached at 772-925-9193 or ekelley@ sunsentinel.com. Follow on Twitter @reporterkell.