Friday, November 29, 2002 - Auburn Evening Star Car-train crash kills driver St. Joe man, 20, ejected from auto A rural St. Joe man died when this car hit a train at a CSX Railroad crossing three miles east of St. Joe on Thanksgiving day. The train pulled the car about 20 yards before it slid down the bank alongside the tracks. ST. JOE, IN - A 20-year-old DeKalb County man died Thanksgiving day when his car slid into the side of a freight train, three miles east of St. Joe. David Z. Banks, 20, was thrown a short distance from the car and died at the scene from head injuries. He lived in the 6400 block of C.R. 71, St. Joe, a half-mile south of the crash scene. A passenger in his car, Cheryl A. Badman, 15, of the 6100 block of State Road 1, St. Joe, suffered injuries to her right hand. An ambulance took her to DeKalb Memorial Hospital at Auburn for treatment. Banks' car collided with the train at 3:25 p.m. on DeKalb County Road 71 at the CSX Railroad crossing, just south of C.R. 60. Banks was driving a blue 1988 Chevrolet Corsica northbound on C.R. 71. Badman told police the railroad crossing gates were down and the lights were flashing, but Banks could not stop on the icy road surface approaching the tracks. "He hit the brakes and, of course, slid - slid right through the crossarm into the train," said DeKalb County Police Chief Deputy John Dennis. The car's front end went underneath the crossing guard arm and hit the side of a freight car. The impact spun the car clockwise, causing the rear of the car to hit the train. The train was traveling eastbound on the south set of tracks. It pulled the car about 20 yards toward the east until it slid down a steep bank beside the tracks. The car's hood came off and remained near the warning signal. Dennis said the freight train did not stop because the engineer did not know about the collision until he was contacted later by radio. The Spencerville Fire Department, DeKalb County EMS, Indiana State Police and CSX Police assisted DeKalb County Police at the crash scene. [This message contained attachments]
Another sad rail crossing accident story. We had one in town where the crossing had no lights or crossbucks, BUT did have 4 stop signs (2 on each side of the road of the crossing) plus warning flags attached, yet someone still drove thru the crossing and into the path of an oncoming Amtrak train. Then, the heirs wanted to sue the RR! Harold
