Here is a link to a sad story in the Twin Cities on Saturday.
We all knew this would happen sooner or later but this is one of those times it sucks to be right.[:(]
Unfortunately the light rail will take alot of heat over this. That poor motor man, I would think this was even more up close and personal than a freight train accident.
I think there will be an autopsy to see if an underlying factor caused the old man to drive the way he did. Perhaps heart attack or stroke??
I read the article and it was sad. It is possible that the driver may have suffered some sort of attack, but it also may have been the result of the slowing of mental processes that tends to come with age.
Obviously, it is not automatic that age diminishes driving ability, but it frequently does. When he was in his late 80’s it became appearant to all in my family that my father could no longer drive without being a hazard to himself and others. Forcing him to stop driving was very difficult.
My deepest sympathies go to his family. May God bless them and keep them
in the palm of His hands. May He give them strength to get through their
grief and sorrow. My heartfelt prayers go out to them. And to the lightrail
crew.
There was just a little blurb on the tv about it. Apparently the family realises that the fault does not lie with the guy driving the train. I am glad to hear this considering that most of the time the family is the first to make excuses. This mans neighbors said that he could not see or hear well.
Probably the toughest thing you as an adult will ever have to do is to stop a parent or other elder from driving when it is clearly evident that they should no longer be behind the wheel. Sometimes an accident like this one or like the one in Santa Monica, where the elderly driver plowed through a closed-street farmer’s market killing several people, can help convince the family member with the “you wouldn’t want that to happen to you” argument.
My heart goes out to the family; I know they are second-guessing their own handling of the driving situation.
I guess maybe he just did not see or hear the train. This just goes to show that you don’t need to be trying to do any thing illeagal bu that you need to be ever vigilent when around the railroads and be aware of whats going on. May God bless his family in their time of sorrow and need. I’ll pray for them.
Here is the same type of story out of Salt Lake City the 4th light rail accident in a week , and saturday was the 3rd deadly accident in 5 years on the line.
Fox 13 Salt Lake City Story for 10-25-04
UTA is re-evaluating its safety measures after the fourth trax accident in one week, including Saturday’s accident which killed 38-year-old Starla Bradbury. Police say Bradbury was running after the train with a group of friends when she slipped on wet cement. She fell under the train’s wheels and was dragged to her death. This is the third accidental trax death in five years. Two of the three accidental deaths have been at the ninth east and fourth south station. UTA says it will take a close look at that station and make any necessary safety changes.
Naturally my condolences go out to Mr. Iverson’s family, but (now don’t get me wrong here) let’s face it folks, a person of 87 with glaucoma and bad hearing has no business driving a car today. Now, on the other hand if an 87 year old (or 107 for that matter) passes a periodic driving test, he or she has every right to drive. I think everybody, from 16 to 116, should be required to take a periodic practical driving test…it’s not just older drivers that need it! We have far too many really lousy drivers on our roads today and the cold hard fact of the matter is that ALL OF US will become worse drivers as we age…period.