Fatal train collision near Golden Gardens

ORIGINAL: July 14th, 10:54 p.m.

A pedestrian was fatally hit by a train at tracks near Golden Gardens. The incident was reported at approximately 6:45 p.m. on July 14th.

UPDATE:  A commuter train at tracks near Golden Gardens fatally hit a female pedestrian last night. The incident occurred shortly after 6 p.m. on July 14th, the exact location at 8400 Seaview Ave. NW, according to the Seattle Fire Dept.

Spokesman Gus Melonas said the Burlington Northern Santa Fe (BNSF) crew operating the Sound Transit train sounded their horn and applied the emergency brake after seeing a pedestrian on the edge of the railroad ties. The Sound train, traveling at about 45 mph, was unable to stop in time.

Unfortunately, the following paragraph has been found misleading. We sincerely apologize for any misinformation caused by this inclusion. Thank you for your observations:

An alleged observer commented to MyBallard that the pedestrian moved from one set of tracks to those parallel where she was struck, after noticing train “A” coming head-on. She seemed unaware of train “B” coming from the opposite direction and may not have been aware of it, possibly due to noise of a first train.

The Sound Transit train was headed from Seattle to Everett, Washington, on a rail line that runs along the shore of Puget Sound. Train traffic in the area was temporarily stalled while the crash was investigated.

Officers and traffic collision detectives investigated the scene at approximately 6:45 p.m., as medics soon after pronounced the death of the victim– an approximately 35 year-old female.

Sadly, Melonas also tells us this is the 13th fatality just this year on BNSF rail tracks in our state.

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