GENTRY -- It must have been a shock for Carl Gschwend, 30, of Marvell, when he drove across the Main Street tracks on Nov. 24, with gates up and no lights flashing, and found the equipment on the tracks was moving.
Gschwend, driving a 2009 Honda Civic, proceeded east on Main Street and crossed the tracks at 10 a.m. He saw the railroad equipment on the rail line but didn't realize it would soon enter the intersection and smash into the driver's side of his car because no one was directing traffic, the crossing gates were up and the warning devices were silent, police reports state.
Shilo Walker, 34, of Pittsburg, Kan., was driving a Jackson 6700 tamper, owned by Jim Conrad of Pittsburg, south on the tracks. He thought all the traffic had stopped as he, blowing the horn in the equipment, entered the intersection. He said the crossing gate had been deactivated while work was being completed on the tracks.
Though the resulting accident caused extensive damage to Gschwend's Honda, he was not seriously injured and was up and walking around after the accident. Walker was not injured and the rail equipment was not damaged, according to reports.
No citations were written, according to police reports.
General News on 12/03/2014