An 80-year-old man was hit by a Canadian National (CN) train late Friday in Beaconsfield, west of Montreal. For reasons unknown, she was on the tracks when the locomotive approached, although the alarm went off.
Updated yesterday at 10:08pm.
At the corner of Elm Avenue and Woodland Avenue, all signaling systems were operational on Friday afternoon when an 81-foot pedestrian swerved onto the tracks. The reasons that urged them to cross are unknown at the moment. An investigation by the Service de Police de la Ville de Montréal (SPVM) is underway, assisted by CN Police.
The collision happened around 5pm in this area of Beaconsfield called Beaurepaire. According to witnesses, the lady was heading north on Woodland Avenue. In this residential area, the tree-lined street of houses crosses Highway 20, then the CN rail system, before terminating at Elm Avenue.
The lady was hit by a loading train while crossing. The train came to a standstill after the collision.
Despite all the alarms, his presence on the tracks cannot be explained, said the spokesman for the Service de Police de la Ville de Montréal (SPVM), Jean-Pierre Brabant. Videos and images of the tragedy could help investigators better understand what happened.
The eighty-year-old was taken to the hospital with serious injuries. By the end of the evening, she was still in critical condition.
A security perimeter was established on Woodland and Elm Avenues. The Highway 20 exit at this point was closed for part of the evening.