Teenager Dies After Being Hit By Train
Teen Was Returning From YMCA
POSTED: 9:15 a.m. EDT October 16, 2003
UPDATED: 9:24 a.m. EDT October 16, 2003
HIGH POINT, N.C. -- A teenager riding a bicycle was killed in Thomasville when he was struck by an Amtrak train.
Police say 16-year-old Joshua James Willis was hit by a southbound train about 7:45 p.m. Tuesday. Willis was a resident of Baptist Children's Home in Thomasville.
He was apparently returning to the home after volunteering at the YMCA.
Thomasville police Chief Larry Murdock said Willis drove his bicycle between four gates that blocked the train tracks. Police are continuing to investigate the incident but said they do not expect to file charges.
Murdock said this is the fourth death on railroad tracks in Thomasville in five years.
Copyright 2003 by The Associated Press.
What a senseless loss. I know teenagers believe themselves to be immortal but this is just a waste.
Dave
Chris L
10-17-03, 06:54 PM
Thomasville police Chief Larry Murdock said Willis drove his bicycle between four gates that blocked the train tracks. Police are continuing to investigate the incident but said they do not expect to file charges.
Sounds like Darwinism to me. I can't recall meeting too many people who were stupid enough to do something like that, teenagers not withstanding. In fact, this is so stupid, that I think all the references to "teenagers" in the headlines are an insult to that age group.
BigFloppyLlama
10-17-03, 08:37 PM
Sounds like Darwinism to me. I can't recall meeting too many people who were stupid enough to do something like that, teenagers not withstanding. In fact, this is so stupid, that I think all the references to "teenagers" in the headlines are an insult to that age group.
Well we're grouped together with the bad drivers so lets just assume we're all that eager to get hurt. There is absolutely no sense in disobeying such a direct warning. Sure a red light or a stop sign []bcould[/b] mean that a car is coming, but a train crossing with the gates down is pretty much a guarantee something large is coming your way.
Chris L
10-17-03, 09:27 PM
Well we're grouped together with the bad drivers so lets just assume we're all that eager to get hurt. There is absolutely no sense in disobeying such a direct warning. Sure a red light or a stop sign could mean that a car is coming, but a train crossing with the gates down is pretty much a guarantee something large is coming your way.
A red light or a stop sign is a warning in itself. It mightn't speak as loudly as a train crossing, but it still says "at least look before proceeding through". Had this guy run a red light and been cleaned up, I would equally have little sympathy.
Gus Riley
10-17-03, 09:38 PM
Your right Dave, truly a senseless loss. :(
BigFloppyLlama
10-17-03, 10:19 PM
A red light or a stop sign is a warning in itself. It mightn't speak as loudly as a train crossing, but it still says "at least look before proceeding through". Had this guy run a red light and been cleaned up, I would equally have little sympathy.
I'm definitely not trying to justify running a red light in any case. I'm just trying to point out that at red lights (because of the way they are timed) there is not always a chance that a car will be coming. But railroad crossings don't just come at random periods, if the gates are down a train is coming.
Pat
10-18-03, 02:40 AM
I have read that fully half of the fatalities at train crossings are of people driving around the barriers in an attempt to beat the train.
I have also read that virtually every engineer with more than 1 year of experience has run down a motorist on the tracks.
This account of the cyclist is even more over the top. A cyclist can clearly hear things and trains are pretty noisy. I mean the clatter, the whistle, the rumble and the shaking ground should all be subtle hints that maybe you might want to wait.
wrench_meister
10-19-03, 06:48 AM
I agree with you, Pat. The kid should have seen the train was very close and should not have risked trying to cross.