One dead, two injured after being hit by trains near Sultan

It happens everyday. Push your luck, and whammo, your dead. We win EVERY time.

teenagers. at a non-marked crossing, thought he could beat the train, and was hit at 50 mph....now his life hangs on the line... 3rd time this year some one from the area has lost their life.

the fatality to the young teenaged girl is a tragedy. She was the victim of the
friend who was driving, who thought he could beat the train. HE SHOULD BE CHARGED WITH VEHICULAR HOMICIDE. Being that wreckless with some one else's life
The family of this girl, is a single mother and a sister, and several step brothers and sisters who live elsewhere.
The Mother needs financial aid to bury her daughter, as she is almost penniless.
PLEASE THINK OF CONTRIBUTING TO THIS COSTLY FUNERAL....

Wow, this is pretty bad. First, I think it is unfair to assume that the driver was racing to beat the train. I am furious that everyone is so willing to believe the first negative report by the media. I also don't appreciate the peniless single mother comment. Krystinia comes from a huge extended family, all of whom love her very much. She has a mother and a father, who have been working togehter diligently for the past few days making the necessary arrangements for her memorial and burial. While it is expensive and a financial strain one doesn"t necessarilly prepare for,there is plenty who I am sure are willing to help.
Don't make this worse by desparaging the boy who was driving unless by some divine intervention you have all the facts. The is all bad enough and the negative spin only hurts our families further.

Krystinia's Aunt

this is a sad day and things like this happen all the time out here.. that was a privite crossing but what you dont see is if they turned the camra just a little to the right you would see your standard rr crossing so in my oppinion i find it hard to believe that they didnt hear it..i am emensley sorry for the familys .. i went to school with them and its really sad that it happened. ive always thought that the town of sultan should do more to make sure that privite rr crossings (like that one) have the proper lights and bars to make sure that things like this dont happen again.. ive lost too many friends there and its time to put a stop to it.. again this is my oppinionand me venting so im sorry to make anyone mad or sad.. i feel bad for everyone envolved in this verry bad accident

"First, I think it is unfair to assume that the driver was racing to beat the train"

You are right, the Engineer "steered" the train into the path of the car, not the other way around.

I am so sorry for the loss of this beautiful young girls life. What a tragedy. I hope that we all take a second and remember to be safe at public and private crossings. Public crossing aren't free from malfunctioning though. Those crossing arms only a piece of equipment. And can malfunction, so it is up to us to be safe and aware at ALL RR crossings.

I also would like to respond to something I read here. To whom-ever wrote that the Engineer "steered" his train into the path of the car and not the other way around. Since when can the Engineer "steer" around a vehicle or anything else for that matter that has accidentally put it's self at the wrong place, and the wrong time.

Are you kidding me?

You cannot "steer" a train. It is a sarcastic joke. Just as it is a joke to assume that we can stop a train on a dime and avoid hitting ignorant people who fail to heed to the RR X-ing devices (lights, bells, x-bucks, etc.).

Stop, look and listen people. It is the law. If you have a problem understanding the warning signs at a RR x-ing in the State of Washington, then go to the following link and read all about what you should do to avoid becoming a statistic:

http://www.dol.wa.gov/driverslicense/drivergu...

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Thanks for clarifying that you were being sarcastic. I obviously didn't catch that. Sorry. I am still concerned that people who cross RR X-ins's on a daily basis get too comfortable, and forget that you cannot stop a train until it is usally too late. So thank you for also for posting the link.

Screw you guys for the negative comments. I had alot of classes with the teenage boy in highschool and he is a sweetheart. It is a train track that only has a stop sign and that is not the first time someone has came close to getting hit at THAT particular railroad crossing. I have lived in Sultan for 6-7 years. Dont assume shit, especially when you aren't even from the state of Washington.

www.wutc.wa.gov/railroadsafety

safetydata.fra.dot.gov/officeofsafety

www.ntsb.gov/Railroad/railroad.htm

www.operationstop.com

here is the places to do research to improve those crossing in sultan.

came down to this, teenager, loud music, easily distracted, 50 mph train coming around a corner, LOUD HORNS, driver distracted, situation arose and bad decision made, all in all equals trauma for the victims' families and the crew that was involved...

life is too short, educate others..

"It is a train track that only has a stop sign and that is not the first time someone has came close to getting hit at THAT particular railroad crossing."

I can assume 3 things things:

No stop by the driver

No Look by the driver

and

No Listen by the driver

I don't think that any of us are here to upset anyone. I am so sad at what happened. I have children and young nieces and nephews that will be driving soon that I worry about the same thing happening to. I just really want people to be aware of what is going on. Sultan Turk, I am positive that these were two awesome people, no doubt about it. Terible things happen though. I am very happy to hear that the driver of the car is OK. I pray that he will be able to move forward with his life positively. Though I am not from the state of Washington, I am sure that railroad safety doesn't differ much if any from Oregon.

Why are we arguing about this. It was something that had happened and know one could have done to change it. Yes there should be something to signal a train is coming because there has been many accidents through the town. But right now we all need to think about Kristina and how the world lost such a amazing girl. We also need to thank god Jeff is still alive. RIP Kristina I will miss you!

This girl's brother is one of my best friends' brother. They have a large mixed family, and my friend was devastated by this. He was very close to this girl. Normally loud and funny, my friend of almost 5 years was quiet and turned to a loner. This is tragic, and I only hope the family will cope well and teach others about the dangers of this.

Hmmm, maybe a good review of Washington State Drivers Handbook is in order for the driver who caused this young lady to be killed.

http://www.dol.wa.gov/driverslicense/drivergu...

PAGE 34

A white X-shaped sign or “crossbuck” with “Railroad
Crossing” on it is located at the railroad crossing.
This sign has the same meaning as a “Yield” sign. You
must yield to trains crossing the road.

PAGE 48

You must yield the right-of-way to trains crossing the
roadway.

So what does Yield mean?

http://www.m-w.com/dictionary/yield

to give or render as fitting, rightfully owed, or required

So, our young driver failed to heed the warnings given by the State of Washington, the FRA and the RR. As a result of his actions (read, not accident)he killed a young lady.

AMTK Hogger, while I appreciate your diligence to point the finger and educate those to Washington DOL sinage. You should be careful. I was hit at a similar crossing in the same town just a few weeks before this young girl lost her life. The signs you refer to are not at all posted, not a single one of them in the manual, at the private crossings in sultan, also, there is no regulation for the train to blow its whistle. So please go blindfold yourself and stand on the train tracks in sultan, You would be sure to hear the train coming. otherwise please keep the finger pointing and speculation about what happened to yourself.
To the families of the sultan teens involved, I am immensly sadened by the frequency of these occurances and I am sorry for your loss. It would be nice to work with the state and the RR to make these crossings safer.

education is the key on all aspects. Society is so impatient and they think they are the only ones out there. I have been on that stretch of track thru Sultan and have worry about some one hi balling the crossing when we are going thru there at 50 mph blowing the horn. And it's loud enough that any one should hear it, unless they are just that ignorant and not paying atttention to their surroundings.

Think the saying is STOP, LOOK AND LISTEN. Most don't do that. They are so focused on where they need to be or on the freaking cell phone and on step away from road rage cause some one is driving to slow. So lots of factors are involved.

One way to solve this issue with the crossings is to go to your community councel and then to the county and the state to bring this issue up. It's not all the railroads responsibility.

The I'll have to defer to GCOR Rule 1.1.1, whereas if in doubt, take the safe course of action, and as a RR employee, I would be a fool to stand blindfolded within the gauge of the rail.

Shall we refer to the Washington State Drivers manual again for another RR safety lesson?

http://www.dol.wa.gov/driverslicense/drivergu...

page 56

Scanning
To be a good driver, you must know what is happening
around your vehicle. You must look ahead, to the sides, and
behind the vehicle. Scanning helps you to see problems
ahead, vehicles and people that may be in the road by the
time you reach them, signs warning of problems ahead, and
signs giving you directions.

Look to the sides - As other vehicles, pedestrians, or
bicyclists may cross or enter your path anytime, look to the
sides to make sure no one is coming. This is especially true
at intersections and railroad crossings.

page 59

Railroad crossings - As you approach a railroad
crossing, slow down and look up and down the tracks to
make sure a train is not coming. If you are not sure it is safe
to cross the tracks, turn your radio down or off, stop talking,
put the window down, and look and listen for a train. Never
start to cross until the traffic clears ahead. Wait until there
is room on the far side so you will not have to stop on the
tracks.
At crossings with more than one track, wait until the
passing train is well down the track before starting to cross.
Another train may be hidden by the one that just passed.

Page 63

Railroad crossings - You need to make sure there are
no trains coming and there is room to cross. Some
crossings are bumpy so you need to slow down to
safely cross

Wow, so regardless if the crossing has posted signs or not, one must be aware of his/her surroundings. Private RR crossings are not exempt. In fact, since everyone in town knows that the tracks are in place and are very dangerous, you should ensure that you take the time to ensure the crossing is clear.