Train, truck collide near Jamestown; engineer and two passengers injured
JAMESTOWN —According to authorities at the scene, the gate arm that is designed to warn drivers that a train is approaching did not lower.
Pinecroft-Sedgefield Fire Department Deputy Chief Jeff Thomas said it “seems to be the case” that the gates did not deploy at the crossing when a man driving a semi moved into the crossing. “There was traffic behind him and he could not proceed back,” Thomas said.
The deputy chief estimated that trains travel through the crossing at about 70 mph. “It looks like they were trying to stop,” Thomas said.
The semi, owned by J-Par Trucking of Roanoake, Ala., was carrying 40,000 pounds of agricultural lime.
The semi truck and Amtrak train collided Thursday just after lunch near the intersection of Dillon Road and West Main street, near the Jamestown Public Library.
Witnesses who watched the aftermath of the collision said the crossing has been problematic in the past.
“Sometimes you’re driving over the track and there are no lights, no bells or anything and the gate just comes down,” said Kim Farrington, of Jamestown. “I’ve had the arm come down and hit my van three times.
“Sometimes you’re just driving and all of a sudden you’re between two arms with no warning. There’s maybe a five-second delay between the two arms coming down,” Farrington said. “I’ve seen cars hit here before at this intersection and the one below here.”
There are two train tracks with a gate and signals at the crash location.
According to Guilford County EMS the train’s engineer and two train passengers were injured. There were 62 passengers and five crewmembers on the train, which runs from Charlotte to Raleigh.
U.S. Army Sgt. Matthew Plye, 28, of Jamestown, saw the crash and rushed to help the semi driver and injured train passengers.
“I just saw a giant cloud of smoke and it just happened. I ran over to the driver to see if he was OK and to ask what he was hauling.”
Pyle, who has served tours in Iraq and Afghanistan, was on his way home from a job at the Army Recruiting station in Greensboro when he saw the crash.
“I didn’t think about whether I should run in there. It was just instinct,” Pyle said. “If someone needs help, you just help them.”
Two of the injured were taken to Moses Cone Hospital, a third was taken to Med Center in High Point.
By 2:30 p.m., firefighters had spayed the accident scene with flame-retardant foam. A Guilford EMS van picked up the remaining uninjured passengers and took them to Jamestown library.
Crews from the Guilford County EMS, Guilford County Sheriff, High Point Police, North Carolina Highway Patrol and the Pinecroft-Sedgefield Fire Department responded to the accident.