LAGUNA HILLS : Train Hits Stolen Car Left Near Track
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A stolen car that had been abandoned near a railroad track was struck Tuesday morning by a freight train, according to a police report.
The crash occurred at 6:21 a.m. about 100 yards north of the Pacific Park overpass, said Rudy A. Sanchez, a spokesman for the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe railroad police. No one was injured, but a man was seen fleeing the scene, Sanchez said.
Because of darkness, the train conductor saw the car, a late-model Oldsmobile, only at the last moment and had no chance to stop the 5,000-foot northbound train, Sanchez said. Freight trains travel at about 50 m.p.h. and usually take about a mile and a half to come to a full stop, he said.
Accidents like this happen “about once a month,” usually when someone is attempting to take a shortcut on a railroad right of way, Sanchez said.
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