WTOC, Savannah, Georgia, news, weather and sports | Train Crashes Into Illegally Stopped Tractor-Trailers
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Around 9am, Port Wentworth police were called to the Dean Forest Road and Highway 21 intersection for one problem. Instead, they got a much bigger, more dangerous problem to deal with.
Motorists called police because the traffic light seemed to be stuck on red. Minutes later, a train crashed into two tractor-trailers stuck in the traffic jam at the light.
The two tractor-trailers had stopped illegally on the railroad tracks waiting for the traffic light, but when the railroad crossing signals and lights started to flash, the drivers of the tractor-trailers had nowhere to go.
The train couldn't stop, and smashed into the trailers, covering the nearby area in the cargo, including grapefruit juice, chicken grease and powdered plastic.
Meanwhile, one driver was taken to the hospital for minor injuries. The other stayed on the scene.
He told WTOC he looked both ways and didn't see a train and figured it would be okay to wait for the light on the railroad tracks. Next thing he knew, the train was coming and he had traffic behind and in front of him with nowhere to go.
The crash shut down traffic on Dean Forest Road for most of the day, reopening just before 5pm.
Cleanup of the area began Friday afternoon, but the more than 15 tons of powdered plastic will take a little longer to clean up, officials told WTOC.
The Georgia Department of Transportation and CSX Railroad say they are investigating, but all railroad signals and crossing arms were working at the time of the accident.
Reported by: Don Logana, dlogana@wtoc.com
