Friday evening September 12, 2014, at approximately 9:00 p.m., Foothills District deputies responded to a collision involving a Union Pacific train and a passenger car. When deputies arrived, they learned the car, driven by a 27-year-old female with a 2-year-old female passenger, was westbound on Curtis Road. The driver failed to negotiate the northbound turn onto Highway Drive, left the roadway, and drove up an embankment onto the railroad tracks.
While the car was stuck on the tracks, an eastbound Union Pacific train was approaching. The engineer sounded his horn and tried to stop the train but was unable to avoid the collision. The train collided with the passenger side of the car and pushed it off the west side of the tracks.
Both occupants in the car were transported to the trauma center. The 2-year-old is in critical condition and the driver is in serious condition. The Sheriff’s Department Traffic Unit responded and took over the investigation. The driver showed no obvious signs of alcohol impairment and the 2-year-old was properly restrained in a child safety seat.