WESTERLY — An Amtrak worker attempting to drive alongside the railroad tracks became stuck in the snow Monday morning and left his truck behind when a train approached, causing the truck to be dragged a short distance along the side of the train.
Westerly police said no injuries were reported in the incident, which was reported around 10:30 a.m., as the worker had exited and left his truck behind as soon as he recognized the danger. The train sustained minor damage and was operable, the police said, but the truck was heavily damaged along the passenger side.
The tracks were shut down to allow for response, officials said, but all trains were running again by early Monday afternoon.
“The driver was heading north along the southbound side of the tracks in the area of United Builder Supply, and the truck got stuck in the snow,” Lacey said. “When the driver saw the train coming, he knew he had a limited time and so he decided to get out of the truck and run for cover.”
According to police, an investigation determined that the worker, who was not identified, had attempted to free the truck by rocking it in reverse and accelerating forward. The efforts caused the truck to slide before coming to a stop closer to the tracks.
Several more efforts were unsuccessful, at which time the worker left the truck behind due to concerns over his safety.
Lacey said the train did not hit the truck head-on, but the collision dragged the truck alongside the train before coming to a stop behind the Westerly Agway on Friendship Street.
The police said there were no violations committed by the worker and no charges are expected.
For Amtrak, the crash marked the second significant incident in Westerly over the past month. On Jan. 15, a 26-year-old mother who worked as an Amtrak conductor was killed after slipping and falling from a moving train that was approaching the Westerly station.
The victim, Emily Herrera of Plainville, Mass., had fallen through a set of train doors that had opened as they normally would when approaching a scheduled stop in Westerly. Herrera then fell below the train and suffered fatal injuries, the police said.
