A 17-year-old local female was seriously injured on Canada Day, losing a leg and several toes on her other foot while trespassing on CN property here.
The teen was carrying a bicycle across the tracks at the CN yard between 8:30 and 8:45 p.m. on July 1, CN spokesman Jim Feeny reported Monday morning.
She had stepped up on a “knuckle” joining the cars of an idling train. When the train started to move, she fell off the knuckle, and below a wheel of a car, Feeny added.
Local CN Police Cst. Pete LeDrew was at the train yard at the time of the accident, and immediately was able to call for medical attention as soon as he became aware of the accident.
She was airlifted to hospital in Winnipeg, where she is listed in stable condition, noted Feeny.
“It’s a tragic illustration of the dangers of trespassing through the yard,” he said.
While he said it was fortunate Cst. LeDrew was able to respond to the situation so quickly, “It shouldn’t have happened in the first place,” Feeny stressed.
“It’s really traumatic for the people involved,” he added.
The incident remains under investigation by CN Police.
In a bizarre coincidence, a 17-year-old Couchiching male was struck by a CN locomotive at the Armit Avenue crossing here last Canada Day around 3:30 a.m.
The youth apparently fell asleep on the railroad tracks. His neck was broken when he was hit by the train.
Fort Frances Times
Local News from Across the Rainy River District
