LITTLE ROCK — A man was killed Sunday evening when a boxcar that jumped the tracks at a crossing in Wrightsville fell over and landed on a vehicle that had stopped at the crossing, authorities said.
The derailment happened about 6:15 p.m. at the Union Pacific Railroad crossing at 145th Street, near Union Street, Pulaski County sheriff’s office spokesman Lt. Carl Minden said. Two of the derailed cars - both empty boxcars - from the southbound train went off the west side of the tracks, and one of them landed on a white Ford Focus, killing the driver.
The man’s identity had not been determined late Sunday, Minden said.
Hours after the derailment, the boxcar remained on top of the Focus, which had been pushed into a ditch south of the road. A wheel from the train was in a water-filled ditch near the tracks, and two other wheels could be seen lying nearby.
About 10:30 p.m., a crane from Union Pacific lifted the 34-ton boxcar off of the Focus, allowing a tow truck to pull it out. Minden said it would likely be several hours before the crossing was reopened to traffic.
Minden and Pulaski County Sheriff Doc Holladay said they couldn’t remember another time when a derailment had caused the death of a motorist in the county.
Union Pacific spokesman Raquel Espinoza said the company would work with sheriff’s deputies to determine the cause of the accident.
“This is something that we try to prevent every day,” Espinoza said. “I know our employees are pretty affected. Obviously, it goes without saying that their thoughts and our thoughts are with the family.”
Rita Campbell, 45, said she was napping in her house on 145th Street, a few houses down from the train tracks, when she heard what “sounded like a loud thunder sound.”
“It just shook the house,” Campbell said. She said her son entered her room and asked her if she had heard the sound, then went outside and saw the wreck.
“It’s just something that you don’t think would ever happen, and it’s right here,” Campbell said.
The train, which had 91 cars and 10 locomotives, had been hauling mixed freight, including plastic and lumber,from Little Rock to Pine Bluff, Espinoza said. In addition to the two boxcars that left the tracks, three other cars, both carrying roofing granules, were derailed but remained partly on the tracks.
Espinoza said some cars were carrying hazardous material, but none of those were derailed and none of the material was spilled.
Arkansas, Pages 9 on 03/21/2011