Pedestrian Killed by Train in Norman
“PEDESTRIAN KILLED BY BNSF TRAIN NEAR OKLAHOMA UNIVERSITY CAMPUS (Norman, Oklahoma * May 14, 2011) An as-yet unidentified, either by name or gender, pedestrian died Saturday morning at 11:31 A.M. when the victim was struck by a Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway train at the Brooks Street railroad crossing near the OU campus. The victim died at the scene as officers from both the Norman Police Dept. and the University of Oklahoma Police Dept. responded. Police said the accident will be further investigated by the NPD Collision Investigation and Reconstruction Team as well as the Criminal Investigations Division and the BNSF Police.”
I have handled a number of pedestrian-train accidents. Although most people assume the worst about victims of this kind of tragedy, often these accidents occur as a result of a locomotive failing to sound it’s horn properly, or other factors which make it difficult or impossible for a motorist or pedestrian to properly perceive impending danger. For example, I have had several reports of signal lights failing in Norman recently. There is really only one way to know the truth about any train accident, and that is to obtain information from the train’s data event recorder, and often, now days, many trains have actual video recorders which can provide answers to a grieving family. There is a huge amount of evidence which the law (and railroad company policy) requires the train corporations to obtain after a catastrophic accident. An experienced train attorney knows where these documents are, and what exactly to look for. The family and friends of the victim of this tragic accident are in my thoughts and prayers.
Roy Dickinson