Drivers must be vigilant around trains
Yuma incident a reminder that train crossings are dangerous spaces
Last week, a man was injured in Yuma when his truck was hit by a train on 24th Street.
According to the Yuma Police Department, the man failed to yield to a railroad crossing arm, and his truck was hit by the train.
The man sustained moderate injuries and was taken to Yuma Regional Medical Center. Photos of the incident show the train hit the truck on the driver’s side door.
Frankly, the man was lucky to survive.
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), in 2021, there were more than 1,600 collisions between vehicles and freight and commuter trains, and nearly 500 collisions at transit train crossings in 2020. Over 130 people died and 644 people were injured – and most of these tragedies are preventable, the NHTSA reports.
And consider this, readers – trains, once in motion, are not easy to stop.
“A freight train may take up to a mile or more – the length of 18 football fields – to stop and a light rail train may require about 600 feet – the length of two football fields,” the NHTSA notes.
The NHTSA offers some safety tips to keep drivers safe, including the following:
• Stop, look both ways, and listen – and remember that trains always have the right of way.
• Don’t stop on the tracks – once you enter the crossing, keep moving.
• Stop 15 feet away from flashing red lights, lowered gates, a signaling flagman or a stop sign.
• Never drive around a lowering gate or ignore signals.
• After the train passes, wait for the gates to fully rise and for all lights to stop flashing before you cross.
• Never assume there is only one train coming from a single direction.
• If you car stalls on the tracks, quickly get everyone out from the car – even if you don’t see a train coming, and get away from the tracks. Then, call the number on the blue emergency notification system sign – and if that’s not visible, call 911.
These tips might seem like common sense readers, but as a reminder, pay attention at train crossings, and please – be safe. Don’t become a statistic.
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