Vets Parade Float Driver Says Train Seemed Still Before Crash
MIDLAND (CBSDFW.COM/AP) — The driver of a float struck by a train in a Texas crash that killed four military veterans told federal investigators that the oncoming train appeared to be stationary.
Documents released Wednesday by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) show that Dale Hayden told investigators he was focused on his left-side rearview mirror, looking for a bump in the intersection, as he crossed the tracks on November 15.
As he looked through his right window, the oncoming train appeared to have stopped. He also said another parade truck had a loud train-like horn that made it difficult to tell if the train was blowing its horn. A Union Pacific train traveling at 62 mph slammed into the veterans as they rode on a flatbed truck.
NTSB said in a preliminary report days after the accident that the railroad crossing warning system was activated 20 seconds before the accident, and the guardrail began to come down seven seconds after that. Investigators say the float began crossing the train tracks even though all the warning systems were sounding and flashing.
(©2013 CBS Local Media, a division of CBS Radio Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
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