Family identifies teens killed by LRT train

 

Delia Papastesis and Jamie Kootenay are shown in a provided image.

Family members are identifying the two teens killed by an LRT train as Jamie Kootenay and Delia Papastesis.


Investigators say a group of six young adults were walking east of the marked LRT crossing at 82 Street and 113 Avenue at 8:15 p.m. on Tuesday, when two people who were stopped on the tracks were struck by a northbound LRT train.


Nineteen-year-old Jamie died at the scene. And his 19-year-old girlfriend, Delia was taken to hospital but later died of her injuries.


"I saw her yesterday -- we saw both of them yesterday," said Delia's sister Janice Randhile.


"All I know is she got hit by a train and I don't know why," she added.


Jamie's grandfather told CTV News his grandson was a good boy who was very respectful.


One witness who did not want to appear on camera for CTV says it appeared the couple was fighting.

She said she saw a woman being held down on the tracks by a man who had laid on top of her.


The witness said she yelled at the couple to move as the LRT train approached. She revealed that the bell was ringing at the time so the couple would have known the train was coming.


One of Jamie's friends, Nolan Shone, says he was with the couple Tuesday night and disputes the claim that the female was held down.


"Jamie wouldn't hold down Delia like that. They were both happy, go-lucky people," he said.
Family members say the couple had been dating for four years.


"I know they had their problems, but I don't know if that was the cause of what happened," said Randhile.


Police say the homicide unit is involved in the investigation to determine if the deaths were accidental or criminal. At this point, police say they have been getting conflicting reports from witnesses.
"Homicide investigators are going to be looking at all angles and all the information from the witnesses," said Edmonton Police Service spokesman Chad Orydzuk.


Both Delia and Jamie had once attended Amiskwaciy Academy.


Edmonton Public Schools says they are providing support to staff and students who may have know the pair.


Autopsies have been scheduled for Wednesday afternoon. Investigators are still looking to speak to witnesses who left the scene before police arrived. Anyone who has information on the incident is asked to call police at 780-423-4567 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477.
With files from Sonia Sunger

Story provided by: edmonton.ctv.ca

New signs warn cyclists of track risk

New signs went up last week at the corner of Cerrillos Road and St. Francis Drive, warning bicyclists about catching their wheels in the groove for railroad tracks.

The black-on-orange signs put in place Wednesday include a diagram of tracks crossing a lane diagonally, plus the words: "Tracks catch bike wheels."

Megan Arredondo, public information officer for the New Mexico Department of Transportation, said the signs were erected because of a steady stream of complaints about the hazard, including a Tuesday letter in The New Mexican from Loveland, Colo., cyclist Richard Lowinger.

"In order to avoid further accidents, we just figured we would warn the bicyclists to use caution when approaching this area," she said. "I'm told by our bicycle, pedestrian and equestrian coordinator (Tom Trowbridge) that an intersection such as the one at Cerrillos and St. Francis is pretty unique."

Many local bike riders who have fallen at the intersection would agree. For years, city planners have considered plans for an underpass, overpass or some other way of safely funneling pedestrians and bicyclists through Santa Fe's busiest intersection, made more complicated since the New Mexico Rail Runner began running more than a dozen trains a day two years ago.

The new signs come too late for Mokhtiar Bal, who injured his shoulder by falling there Oct. 30.

The 41-year-old native of India said he has occasionally commuted to work on a bike as well as ridden recreationally since moving to Santa Fe 17 years ago.

Oct. 30 was a sunny Saturday, following several days of cool weather, so Bal rode from his home on Maclovia Street to Canyon Road to see friends. On his way home, and wearing his helmet, he turned left off Cerrillos onto St. Francis and caught the front tire of his mountain bike in the rail groove.

"It slam-dunked me onto the cement on my right side, and I log-rolled," he said. "I was thrown to the opposite side — not toward the road, but toward the cement (sidewalk)."

Bal, a medical professional at Concentra Medical Centers, said he did a self-assessment and realized that in addition to abrasions, he had a limited range of motion on his right side, as if he had had a stroke. He said he tried to walk his bicycle home, but as the pain got worse, detoured to his girlfriend's house on Agua Fría Street. She took him to an urgent-care clinic.

Doctors there took X-rays, then had him come back the next day for three-view X-rays. Bal said he had no broken bones, but an orthopedic specialist said he should have a magnetic-resonance imaging (MRI) to determine if there are damaged tendons, ligaments or other soft tissue that need surgery.

In the meantime, Bal said, he's been advised to stay away from work for three weeks, until Nov. 22, to keep his arm in a sling and keep taking medication. He said he cannot sleep well or drive his truck because he lacks the strength to steer it or work its stick shift.

Ball said at least two of his co-workers have sustained broken bones falling at the same locale.

"It's ridiculous," he said. "Tourists come here and take their kids on bike trails. ... They need to do something about this poor construction or planning."

Contact Tom Sharpe at 986-3080 or tsharpe@sfnewmexican.com.

Story Provided by: santafenewmexican.com

Pearl River man drives car into train

An 81-year-old Pearl River, N.Y. man drove his car into the path of a train in Westwood on Tuesday afternoon, according to officials. NJ Transit spokesperson Penny Bassett Hackett said the man did not sustain serious injuries, however was taken to Hackensack University Medical Center as a precaution.

 

PHOTO COURTESY OF TRACY JEFFERY 

 

 

Firefighters respond to an accident just off Broadway outside the Westwood Shopping Center. An 81-year-old man drove his car into the path of a train in Westwood Tuesday afternoon, according to officials. 

 

 

According to officials, at 2:40 p.m. on Nov. 2 the operator of the vehicle was driving southbound on Broadway in Westwood when he attempted to make a right turn into the Westwood Shopping Center. The man drove through the gate and into the path of the train, Bassett Hackett said. The train was about to stop at the nearby Hillsdale train station. The man was the only person in the vehicle, according to Westwood Police Chief Frank Regino.


Westwood Police and NJ Transit Police arrived on the scene minutes after the accidents, Regino said.
Regino said a light stanchion was damaged as a result of the accident.


The 35 passengers aboard the train were delayed an hour, Bassett Hackett said, and as of 5 p.m.

Tuesday afternoon Pascack Valley line trains were experiencing 10 to 15 minutes delays.

Story Provided by: northjersey.com

West Bengal train accident: 50 feared killed as train rams another

 

 

Sainthia, West Bengal :  Fifty people are feared dead in a train collision in West Bengal, near the Jharkhand border. Over 170 people have been taken to hospital, some are said to be in critical condition.

At around 2 am on Monday, the Uttar Banga Express coming in from New Cooch Bihar to Sealdah rammed a stationary Bhagalpur-Ranchi Vananchal Express at Sainthia station in Virbhum district, 191 kms from Howrah. (See Pics)

 

Casualties are feared in two general second class bogies of the Vananchal Express. These coaches and the luggage van and guard van of the train were hit. A local television channel said so severe was the impact that the roof of a bogey had been detached in the collision and was thrown up on an overbridge. (Watch:Impact severe, bogey roof thrown up on overbridge: Ticketing officer)


Relief operations are on and around 32 bodies have reportedly been removed from the wreckage. Equipment like gas cutters are being used to bring people out of the mangled heaps that the bogies are. The focus is on saving lives and the locals in the area have been helping in rescue work. There are some people coming out unscathed from the wreckage. (Watch: Locals helping remove bodies from wreckage)


PTI said Eastern Railway sources in Kolkata had confirmed that the driver of the Uttar Banga Express, M C Dey, had died in the accident, but there were no reports about the fate of assistant driver N K Mandal.


The guard of the Vananchal Express, A Mukherjee, also died in the accident.


Sainthia is about 22 km from Rampurhat and most of the injured are being taken to a hospital there. Some have been taken to the district headquarters, Shiuri. Some of the injured at Shiuri are said to be in critical condition. There is reportedly a shortage of blood.


The first accident relief train and medical van reached the spot at about 3.35 am. More trains are on their way from Rampurhat, Asansol and Burdwan.


Since the accident, the undamaged bogies of the Vananchal Express have been disconnected and the train has left Sainthia for Ranchi. A new engine has also reached for the Uttar Banga Express and the train will leave for Sealdah soon. (Watch:Unaffected bogies of Vanachal detached, train leaves for Ranchi)


Eastern Railway CPRO, Samir Goswami said  a few trains – the Kanchunjunga Express, the Sealdah bound Darjeeling mail and the Kanchankanya Express had been diverted.


Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee was in Delhi and rushed to the spot as did senior officials.
Questions are being raised on how the two trains were on the same line.  Also, the scheduled arrival and departure of the Uttar Banga Express at Sainthia was 1.38 am and 1.39 am and it was not clear why the train, which was to halt at the station, arrived at a high speed.


Control rooms have been opened in Sealdah, Malda, Bhagalpur and Howrah.


Helpline numbers:
Ranchi: (0651) 2600263/64,  2460488, 2461404
Sealdah: (033) 23503535, 23503537,
Malda: (06436) 222061
Bhagalpur: (06412) 4222433
Jamalpur (063444) 3101
(With PTI inputs)

Provided by: currentnewsindia.com

Train Engineer Was Texting Just Before California Crash

The train driver blamed for the worst U.S. train crash in 15 years was sending and receiving text messages seconds before his crowded commuter train skipped a red light and collided head-on with a freight train, federal investigators said on Wednesday.
The Metrolink commuter train plowed into a Union Pacific freight locomotive on September 12 in Chatsworth, California, killing 25 people and injuring 135 in the worst train accident since 1993.
A National Transportation Safety Board probe has focused on whether the engineer, identified as Robert Martin Sanchez, 46, failed to heed trackside signals. Sanchez was killed in the crash.
Cell phone records show Sanchez was sent a text message at 4:22:01 p.m., and received one at 4:21:03 p.m. The accident occurred at 4:22:23 p.m., according to Union Pacific train's onboard recorders.
He received seven and sent five text messages between 3:00 p.m. and the time of the accident.
Sanchez also received 21 text messages and sent 24 while he ran a train from 6:44 a.m. to 8:53 a.m.
Since the timings were not all recorded on a common platform, the precise correlation between the events is not clear, investigators at the NTSB said.
Local TV station KCBS reported that a teenager claimed to have received a text message from the Metrolink engineer a minute before the collision.
Following the accident, California authorities temporarily banned railroad workers from using cellphones on duty.
(Reporting by Syantani Chatterjee; Editing by Peter Henderson and Sandra Maler)

Information Provided By: www.reuters.com

Minibus driver charged with causing deaths of 7 family members in August train collision

Driver's lawyer denies charges, claims failed lookout, poor visibility caused fatal accident.

By Yanir Yagna 

 

 

Charges were pressed Thursday against Yashar Yeshurun, a minibus driver who caused the death of 7 family members in a car accident last August.

	Minibus driver Yashar Yeshurun at a reenactment at the scene of the crash where 7 were killed.                                      Photo by: Ilan Asayag

Yeshurun's lawyer denied the charges, saying he was not responsible for the accident.


The accident occurred when Yeshurun attempted to pass over a railway crossing on road 353 near Kibbutz Gat in southern Israel. Yeshurun tried to cross the tracks even though the barrier was down. The train conductor noticed the vehicle stuck on the tracks but was unable to stop the train on time.


Even though the crossing point had been equipped with a lookout point, the lookout on duty did not alert the train operator on time that the minibus had broken through the gate.


Aryeh and Rivki Bernstein and four of their children: their pregnant daughter Mali Gotstein, and Yohanan, Chaya and Moti Bernstein were among those killed in the accident. Also killed was Mali Gotstein's infant son, Mordechai Aharon.


The family was en route to Moshav Komemiyut, an ultra-Orthodox community where the family planned to celebrate the coming Sabbath.


Yeshurun's lawyer denied the charges on Thursday. "Yeshurun was held solely responsible, even though the lookout did not alert the train conductor on time and the signs at the place were not visible due to the sunlight."


Yeshurun expressed his remorse and said he was receiving psychiatric treatment following the accident.


"I speak with the family members every other day… they support me, but I feel very bad and am sorry for all that happened."
 

 Story provided by: haaretz.com

train accident - latest news

train accident - latest news