Two youths were killed Saturday morning after they apparently tried to beat a train through a railroad crossing.
Killed were:Nathan Phillips, 16, West Weber.
Tyson Murray, 15, Hooper.
Union Pacific Railroad employees and other motorists who saw the crash said the youths were driving east in a pickup truck on 1200 South, which runs parallel to two sets of railroad tracks 20 yards from the road. They were traveling at about 8:45 a.m. just ahead of a Union Pacific train going the same direction.
The teens turned right onto 3500 West and into the railroad crossing, apparently believing they could get through in time.
"You know how young people are," said Sgt. Klint Anderson with the Weber County Sheriff's Office. "Sometimes they get a little bit of courage when wisdom might work better."
Anderson emphasized, however, that he didn't know exactly what the victims were thinking. Phillips, who was driving, lives less than a block from the scene of the accident. The crossing does not have barrier arms. But the red lights were flashing when the boys tried to drive through, witnesses told police.
"You would think that was the case (that they were trying to beat the train), and it probably was, but we really don't know," he said.
The train broadsided the pickup, pushing it forward a short distance and onto the adjacent set of tracks, where it was struck by another train going the opposite direction. The mangled vehicle ended up back at the railroad crossing where the second train finally came to a stop.
Emergency workers cut the youths out of the truck and administered first aid in a losing effort - the teens were pronounced dead at McKay-Dee Hospital. It was not immediately known whether they died at the scene or en route.
The crossing has warning lights but no restraining arms. Anderson said it was conceivable, though unlikely, that the victims did not see the train or the lights, or both.
Witnesses said the lights were working and that both train and lights were easily seen.
The Weber County Sheriff's Office and Union Pacific are investigating the exact causes and circumstances of the accident. There was no indication that the youths had been drinking. Police surmised the primary cause was simply lack of experience - the driver had had his driver license less than a year.
"You would think people would be a little more observant," Anderson said. "You never win with trains."
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ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
Utah fatalities from train accidents since 1990
- Jan. 25, 1997 - A 16-year-old Wellington girl was killed north of Price when her pickup truck was struck by an Amtrak train about 2 p.m. The flashing lights at the crossing were operating, but slick roads may have prevented her from stopping.
- Nov. 29, 1996 - Edith A. Wyler, 81, died from injuries suffered in a Nov. 27 accident in Spanish Fork. She was riding with her husband Bert D. Wyler about 3 p.m. when their car was struck by a Union Pacific train as they turned onto 10400 South. There was no sign or gate at the crossing.
- Nov. 25, 1996 - James R. Richmond, 30, was heading west on 11100 South when he collided with a southbound train near 450 West. Witnesses said Richmond tried to stop the vehicle before going through the intersection.
- Dec. 31, 1995 - Aaron Price, 18; Brent Larrabee, 18; and Jamie Swensen, 19, of Sandy were killed when the car they were driving crossed in front of an Amtrak train west of I-15 near 10200 South shortly before midnight.
- Oct. 11, 1995 - Bart Bigler, 19, Orem, was killed when the vehicle he was driving was broadsided by an Amtrak train at the 400 South crossing in Orem.
- July 14, 1995 - Sarah Jackson died after following a group of cars around a crossing arm at a Draper railroad crossing (12300 South and 500 West). The 16-year-old was from South Jordan and was attempting to maneuver through the heavy rush-hour traffic.
- Feb. 23, 1995 - Chris Anderson, 19, Spanish Fork, was struck by a train at 6800 S. River Road in Lake Shore.
- Nov. 3, 1994 - Tiffany Taylor, 17, and Raymond Newton, 17, were killed in northwest Nephi when the vehicle they were driving collided with a train. The two Juab High School seniors had just left school on a lunch break. The couple were apparently listening to the radio and didn't hear or see the oncoming train.
- Nov. 16, 1993 - Jaime Gonzales, 31, and Alaro Fernandez, 24, were headed north on Geneva Road in Lindon at approximately 5 a.m. when Gonzales drove around a crossing gate. The car was struck broadside by a southbound Amtrak train.
- Mar. 21, 1991 - Barbaranne Duncan, 22, Clearfield, was killed by a northbound Union Pacific train after she went around crossing arms and her truck stalled on the tracks on Main Street near 200 South in Clearfield. She was trying to remove a toddler from her vehicle.
- Sept. 24, 1990 - Jason L. Amos, 21, was westbound on 4800 South west of Springville when the vehicle he was driving collided with a northbound Union Pacific train, killing the Midvale man.