Huron
Jul 31, 2015
FULL STORY
A 15-year-old boy was struck and killed by a train Friday afternoon while he was out riding his bicycle just a short distance from home.
Keegan Rarden, of the 700 block of Berlin Road, was pronounced dead at the scene.
Rarden was struck at the Berlin Road railroad crossing at about 1:30 p.m. Friday, according to Ohio State Highway Patrol Lt. Brett Gockstetter.
Witnesses said Rarden was riding his bike northbound on Berlin Road and had stopped at the gates for a passing eastbound train.
“According to witnesses, it sounds like as soon as the (eastbound) train cleared the tracks, he instantly went around the gate,” Gockstetter said.
The boy maneuvered around the still-lowered gate and began crossing the tracks. It was at that point a westbound train reached the crossing and struck the child.
"As soon as he got onto the westbound tracks, he was struck by the westbound train," Gockstetter said.
Both witnesses and railroad workers confirmed the westbound train was sounding its horn as it was approaching the crossing. The boy ultimately did not see the train coming because his view was likely blocked by the eastbound train that had just passed by, Gockstetter said.
Two drivers saw the crash unfold and provided troopers with eyewitness accounts of the incident.
“(We'll) have to re-interview those witnesses — they were both really distraught and they had to leave,” Gockstetter said.
A coroner was called to the scene soon after the crash and troopers then notified the child's family. Gockstetter said the boy's home was less than a quarter-mile from the crossing.
Huron police were initially called to the crash, but handed the investigation over to troopers upon learning it was an accidental collision.
The Berlin Road crossing was shut down to traffic for a few hours as crews worked to clear the scene.
UPDATE 4:15 p.m.
A 15-year-old boy was pronounced dead after he was struck by a train on Berlin Road this afternoon, according to the Ohio State Highway Patrol.
The child's identity will be made public yet this afternoon, as troopers are meeting with his relatives at the moment.
Troopers said the boy was on his bike and waiting for an eastbound train at the Berlin Road crossing around 1:30 p.m. That train had just passed when the boy began to cross the tracks —but at that point, a westbound train came through the crossing on a second set of tracks, and struck the child.
A coroner was called to the scene, and Berlin Road was blocked off for a few hours as crews investigated the crash. As of about 4:15 p.m., Berlin Road has reopened to traffic.
UPDATE 3 p.m.
Berlin Road remains closed as authorities investigate a death at a railroad crossing.
Officials said a person on a bicycle was struck by a westbound train at about 1:30 p.m.
Police said that person died as a result of the crash, but the identity of the person has not yet been made public. Huron police said officials were waiting to make contact with a family member.
Ohio State Highway Patrol is on the scene, and a crash reconstruction team is en route to the area to determine how the crash occurred.
ORIGINAL POST
Berlin Road in Huron is currently closed following an accident between a train and a pedestrian riding a bike.
The coroner has been called to the scene.
The crash happened at approximately 1:30 p.m. this afternoon at the Berlin Road crossing.
All train traffic has been stopped in the area. Avoid the area as emergency personnel work at the scene and investigate. River Road can be used as a detour.