Belmont Avenue and Abby Street Site of Train Collision
A train collision involving a pedestrian resulted in a fatality in Fresno on April 9. According to a representative of the Fresno Police Department, the accident happened in the central part of the city at Belmont Avenue and Abby Street around 8:00 in the morning.
Authorities said that the signal indicating a train was approaching was functioning properly. The pedestrian was transported to a local hospital and was said to be in critical condition. He succumbed to his injuries at the hospital. The police closed the train crossing for a time and were actively investigating the accident to determine why it happened. The identity of the pedestrian has yet to be released pending notification of family members.
Sudden Loss of a Loved One
The way a family facing the unexpected loss of a loved one varies, especially when wrongful death is involved. Some family members may be angry and confused, while others are so grief-stricken that they appear to be in a daze. There are ways that friends, other family members, and colleagues can provide help and support. This includes:
- Sending cards or flowers if you live too distantly to make a personal visit.
- Offering to help make funeral and burial arrangements. That visit to make arrangements is one of the hardest things a family has to do following a sudden death in the family. Having someone to lean on can be of great comfort.
- Help around the house by cutting the grass, tending to children, or running errands.
- Bring over food or have it delivered. People deep in grief often forget to eat. However, it is important in order to keep up their strength during these trying times.
- Be a good listener. Talking is one way in which a grieving person expresses their emotional loss. Let the family lead the way in this because not everyone wants to verbally express their feelings.
- Offer to run errands such as picking the children up from school or taking them to after-class activities, grocery shopping or picking up dry cleaning.
- If the grieving person is a widow or widower, offer to accompany them or drive them to run personal errands.
Train Crossing Accidents
Train accidents do not seem to happen as frequently as other types of crashes and are not perceived as a threat by many people. However, the United States Department of Transportation reports that about 5,800 crashes occur annually. The number of individuals killed in train accidents in 2018, the last year for which data is available, was 878. This is an increase of 55 fatalities from 2017. In addition, 2,300 individuals were injured in a train collision in 2018. Overall, someone is killed by a train every 100 minutes in this country.
Reasons for a Train Accident
There are many reasons a train accident happens. Some of the most common are:
- Negligence on the part of the conductor
- Faulty equipment
- Poorly maintained tracks
- Non-functioning crossing lights or warnings
- Collision with a car or other train
- Train derailment
- Mechanical failure
- Defective tracks
Liability in a Train Accident
Determining liability in a train accident can be complicated. It is important to use experts schooled in the intricacies of such accidents. If it is due to poor track maintenance or upkeep, the entity in charge of maintaining them is at fault. In some instances, it is the train company that fails to replace broken or aged tracks. Crossing lights and signals are also the responsibility of the train company. Our investigators work with the authorities who oversee train accidents to determine the cause of the accident. If the engineer in charge of the train caused the crash due to distraction or other issues, both he/she and the company can be held responsible through a Fresno wrongful death claim.
How a Law Firm Investigates a Train Accident
At our firm, our investigators are dispatched to the site of the accident to gather evidence about the crash. There they interview witnesses to the train collision and obtain police reports to review them for mistakes. If the accident occurred at an urban crossing, it is possible to obtain video accounts of the train collision. Once all the evidence is accumulated, they pass it on to our lawyers to build a strong wrongful death case for the grieving family.
Fresno Wrongful Death Lawyer
I’m Ed Smith, a Fresno wrongful death lawyer. When an act of negligence costs the life of a loved one, the family may place a claim for compensation. For my free and friendly advice, phone me at (559) 377-7676 or (800) 404-5400. You can also reach me by sending me a message online.
I belong to:
Click on the following links to read client reviews and look over cases my law firm handled in the past:
I’ve helped Fresno residents for over 38 years obtain compensation for all types of traffic accidents, traumas such as brain injuries and cases involving government entities.
Photo Attribution: https://pixabay.com/photos/level-crossing-transit-barriers-1695561/
:cd llo [cs 852]