Another Tragic Train Accident

For the second time in a week, a train killed a pedestrian, at virtually the same exact location.

On April 2nd, a train collision claimed the life of an unidentified pedestrian in Carlsbad. The deadly crash was reported to have occurred around 11:28 a.m. on the tracks south of Tamarack near Chinquapin Avenue.

According to authorities, the Coaster train was heading north when it collided with the pedestrian.

And last night at approximately 7:30 p.m, a young man died after he was hit by a northbound Coaster train.

Witnesses said the victim and three friends, who appeared to be in their late teens or early twenties, were jumping back and forth over the tracks ahead of the train near Chinquapin Avenue, south of Tamarack. They said they heard the train begin to slow as it sounded its horn several times.

A friend who lives nearby told me what she learned: “Kids were playing chicken and one kid didn’t make it. A neighbor said he just saw sneakers flying in the air. The kids just left. They were sitting on the curb in the cold. They looked like high schoolers. They were issued citations by an officer and left with an adult female around 10:00 p.m.”

There is no further information available on either accident.

Sometimes I like to ride the Coaster from Carlsbad to San Diego because it’s a beautiful scenic route and an alternative to driving in heavy traffic but there seems to be increased human versus train catastrophes, whether it’s purely accidental or suicidal or because kids are playing deadly games.

Before there’s another horrific tragedy, Carlsbad needs to find a solution and make it a priority (over tourism and over destroying every single bit of land to build more hideous developments.)