Teen Killed By Train: No. 3 Post of 2012

Plymouth Patch covered a wide variety of stories in 2012. For the rest of the month we’ll be counting down the top ranked stories. These are the stories that you found most interesting.

A tragic story about a teen killed by a train grabbed the attention of the Plymouth community. Here's a look at the story from May.

Juvenile Killed By Train

Though no name has been released from the Hennepin County Medical Examiner's Office, Plymouth Police report that the train death May 22 was of a 15-year-old white male.

Authorities aren't saying whether or not the boy lived nearby or where he is from. The death was neither an accident nor the result of criminal activity.

Any further identification and information about the man's death has not been released by authorities yet. An investigation into the incident is still pending.

Plymouth Police confirmed the teen died yesterday morning after being struck by a train on railroad tracks between Larch and Zachary Lanes off 53rd Avenue. The tracks follow parallel along 11000 block of 53rd Avenue.

Deputy Chief Dan Plekkenpol said a call came through the Canadian Pacific Rail at 7:59 a.m. May 22 to dispatch.

The train was heading eastbound on the track and audio of the police call indicates the man was found trapped under a part of the train.

No damage to the train itself has been reported by authorities. The train was made up of more than five dozen cars and hauling various commodities that were not livestock or other living creatures, says news reports.

According to a WCCO report, Canadian Pacific authorities indicated that the train horn was sounded to warn the man on the tracks and the brakes were applied, but not in time.

Plekkenpol told WCCO that these types of collisions are rare, but that one had happened near the same area last year. And Kare 11's report indicates that the 2011 incident resulted in having visible pylons placed at the crossing nearby to further alert people to the tracks.