Trucker Escapes Injury In Train Collision Wyoming Driver Didn’t See, Hear Four-Car Train Before He Was Hit

A Wyoming man avoided serious injury Monday afternoon when he pulled his tractor-trailer in front of a four-unit train.

Timothy Carpenter, 42, of Casper, Wyo., said he did not see the train coming when he shifted his maroon International semitruck into first gear and began to cross the tracks on Chilco Road near U.S. Highway 95.

“I stopped, looked, didn’t hear it, didn’t see it, and it hit me,” Carpenter said.

The Union Pacific engine pulling two boxcars and a flatcar slammed into the nose of the truck about 2 p.m. and shoved it into the ditch next to the tracks. The train, which had minor damage, stopped about a quarter of a mile later.

Debris torn from the semitruck was scattered about 50 feet down the tracks. A full load of wooden fence posts piled onto the flatbed trailer Carpenter was pulling was not damaged.

Carpenter hit his head inside the cab of the truck, but refused treatment from medics. Three men riding on the train were not injured.

Kootenai County sheriff’s Deputy Lisa Schueller cited Carpenter for failing to yield to the train.

The crossing is marked with railroad crossbucks and two stop signs, but does not have flashing lights and mechanical arms.

Idaho law enforcement and train officials began airing a series of graphic television commercials last week to slow the number of accidents at railroad crossings.

Officials hope the “Highways or Dieways?” campaign, which was launched last Friday, will encourage motorists to be more alert and make better decisions at crossings.

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