SAN BENITO – One person was evaluated for injuries after a truck was struck by a train in San Benito on Thursday, May 23. According to officials, the accident occurred on Rowson and Crocket Streets.
San Benito Police Chief Mario Perea told ValleyCentral that the safety crossing guards came down, signaling a train was coming. However, a truck went around the safety arms and a second truck attempted to do the same. The second truck was struck by the train.
According to Perea’s statement, the driver was able to walk away and was being checked by EMS on scene for injuries. Police asked the public to avoid the areas of Crockett Street, Sam Houston and Diaz Street as officers investigated the incident, and worked to clear the roadway.
San Benito police indicated the driver of the second truck would be cited in connection with the collision.
When a train hits a vehicle at a railroad crossing, most people assume the driver of the car is to blame. While this thinking is true most of the time, there are some collisions between trains and cars where the railroad operator also bears some liability.
Liability is determined through exhaustive investigation, which considers all factors, including the condition of the crossing, whether the train engineer tried to brake, and whether the train’s horn was used as required by law.
Train engineer’s duty of care
Train engineers are required to apply the brakes as soon as he/she suspects a crash might occur. Since trains cannot stop quickly, the idea is to add a few crucial seconds that might allow the motorist to get off the tracks and out of danger.
Many states, including Texas, require that trains honk their horns to warn motorists of an approaching train, even if there are crossing barriers. As with the duty to brake, honking the horn can provide an additional warning for motorists who may not be aware of an approaching train.
The owners of the train have a duty to ensure their engineers are drug and alcohol free. The liability issues for railroads in the event that an engineer is impaired or distracted are obvious. Of course, just like the train’s right-of-way, such issues, even if proven, do not automatically mean that an injured victim is going to be able to recover compensation for their injuries. Investigators still have to determine if the engineer’s distracted or intoxicated state contributed to the accident. Although the mere presence of a drunk engineer is usually enough to get the railroads to offer some settlement to avoid finding out how a jury will react to such information.
Talk to J. Gonzalez
The above scenarios are just a few of the circumstances that require investigation in the aftermath of a car-train collision. An inexperienced law firm might take on such cases, but they lack the resources or the expertise to properly investigate an accident between a train and a car.
The attorneys at the J. Gonzalez Law Firm have the knowledge and expertise for getting to the truth and maximizing their victims’ compensation.
If someone you love has been injured or killed in a train accident, call 1-800-CAR-CRASH for a free, no-obligation consultation right away.
