Hwy. 38 MM 2 – Buffalo - Railroad Crossing Injury Crash

On March 20th, at approximately 9:35 am, a twovehicle injury crash occurred at the railroad crossing on Hwy. 38 MM 2 at Buffalo, ND. The railroad crossing is a BNSF crossing with stop arms and lights.

A BNSF Ford F250 High Rail pickup, driven by Travis Fortier, 47-year-old male, from Jamestown, ND, was westbound traveling on the BNSF main line track. Fortier entered the crossing on the railroad tracks and into the path of the southbound

GMC, driven by Patty Hoag, 72-year-old female, from Hunter, ND. The Ford struck the drivers side of the GMC in a t-bone type crash.

The stop arms and lights to notify traffic approaching the crossing on Hwy. 38 were not down or activated at the time of the crash. Typically, BNSF high rail vehicles such as this pickup do not trigger the automatic deployment of these traffic safety devices.

The operator of the Ford (Hoag) was transported to Sanford Hospital in Fargo with minor injuries. All three occupants of the GMC were also transported to Sanford Hospital in Fargo for minor injuries. Page, Casselton, and Sanford Ambulance Services worked together on the care and transport of all patients.

The crash remains under investigation by the NDHP.

Agencies Involved: NDHP, Cass County SO, Buffalo FD & 1st Responders, Page Ambulance, Casselton Ambulance, Sanford Ambulance