BMT (RIP)
09-05-2009, 05:42
Soldier loses both legs in train accident
Army Captain William Keating, 27, lost both legs after trying to board a moving train in downtown Columbus around 1 a.m., according to Columbus Police.
The incident occurred at Ninth Street and Broadway.
The Norfolk Southern train was traveling west.
Witnesses told police the Fort Benning soldier from Euless, Texas, attempted to climb a ladder on a boxcar as it passed by.
Keating, they said, lost his footing and fell on the roadway. A chip hopper, a train car used to haul wood chips, struck him and severed both his legs.
Keating was rushed to the Medical Center where Friday evening he was in the intensive care unit listed in critical condition. Keating is a student with the Manuever Center Career Captain Course at Fort Benning.
A spokesperson for the Norfolk Southern railroad said no official statement will be made but confirmed that the information from the police report was accurate.
According to the Federal Railroad Administration Office of Safety Analysis, there have been 29 incidents involving trains and people — whether on foot or in a vehicle — in Muscogee County from 1999-2008.
Operation Lifesaver is an Alexandria, Va.-based nonprofit safety program that aims to eliminate railroad casualties.
Marmie Edwards, vice-president for communications for Operation Lifesaver, said on Friday that there are about 800-900 pedestrians hurt or killed yearly in train incidents.
“It’s really more than we see with car-train accidents, which number is probably less than 500 now.”
She said a big part of the problem is people underestimating the power and speed of a train.
“Because they are so big, they look like they are moving slow,” she said.
Some people are just fascinated with trains.
“Don’t play with them. Stay off the tracks,” she said.
She said the organization has never been able to verify how many of the incidents involved alcohol or drugs.
BMT
Army Captain William Keating, 27, lost both legs after trying to board a moving train in downtown Columbus around 1 a.m., according to Columbus Police.
The incident occurred at Ninth Street and Broadway.
The Norfolk Southern train was traveling west.
Witnesses told police the Fort Benning soldier from Euless, Texas, attempted to climb a ladder on a boxcar as it passed by.
Keating, they said, lost his footing and fell on the roadway. A chip hopper, a train car used to haul wood chips, struck him and severed both his legs.
Keating was rushed to the Medical Center where Friday evening he was in the intensive care unit listed in critical condition. Keating is a student with the Manuever Center Career Captain Course at Fort Benning.
A spokesperson for the Norfolk Southern railroad said no official statement will be made but confirmed that the information from the police report was accurate.
According to the Federal Railroad Administration Office of Safety Analysis, there have been 29 incidents involving trains and people — whether on foot or in a vehicle — in Muscogee County from 1999-2008.
Operation Lifesaver is an Alexandria, Va.-based nonprofit safety program that aims to eliminate railroad casualties.
Marmie Edwards, vice-president for communications for Operation Lifesaver, said on Friday that there are about 800-900 pedestrians hurt or killed yearly in train incidents.
“It’s really more than we see with car-train accidents, which number is probably less than 500 now.”
She said a big part of the problem is people underestimating the power and speed of a train.
“Because they are so big, they look like they are moving slow,” she said.
Some people are just fascinated with trains.
“Don’t play with them. Stay off the tracks,” she said.
She said the organization has never been able to verify how many of the incidents involved alcohol or drugs.
BMT