Shocking video from a Texas fire crew shows a freight train crashing into an unoccupied pickup truck that had just been extricated from a fatal collision.
The crash happened Wednesday morning while the Texas Department of Public Safety was investigating the earlier incident.
It comes at a time when train wrecks following the Norfolk Southern disaster in East Palestine, Ohio are attracting renewed attention.
According to officials, a Honda minivan and a Ford F250 with a trailer were involved in the previous accident, with the Ford ending up on the tracks.
Odessa Fire Rescue video shows a train crashing into an unoccupied pickup truck that has just been involved in a fatal accident.
Shocking video from a Texas fire crew shows a freight train crashing into an unoccupied pickup truck that had just been extricated from a fatal collision
The Texas Department of Public Safety was investigating the fatal accident in Odessa Wednesday morning when a speeding train collided with the truck near West Murphy and Business 20.
Video of the train hitting the truck can be seen in the media player at the top of this article.
According to DPS, a Honda minivan and a Ford F250 with a trailer were involved in an accident and the Ford ended up on the tracks.
The minivan driver, 86-year-old John Edward Grube, died at the scene of the accident but was not near the wreckage.
Grube’s passenger, 90-year-old Kay Clemens Pries, was injured and taken to a local hospital. She is in critical condition, according to the city.
Jesus Guadalupe Laredo, 28, drove the truck and was taken to a local hospital in stable condition.
“The person in that truck got out in time and didn’t come [further] injured,” the city of Odessa said in a Facebook post.
It comes just months after the Ohio disaster, which put Americans on high alert for freight train accidents.
The crash happened Wednesday morning while the Texas Department of Public Safety was investigating the earlier incident
According to officials, a Honda minivan and a Ford F250 with a trailer were involved in the previous accident, with the Ford ending up on the tracks
Norfolk Southern has provided more than $30 million in funds to support residents of eastern Palestine, first responders and community organizations, including $13 million to support more than 7,600 families.
However, the company is also facing a lawsuit from Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost over the cost of cleaning up toxic chemicals and environmental damage.
The federal government has also sued the railroad for environmental damage caused by the February 3 derailment.
Shaw said he supports federal efforts to strengthen railroad safety legislation, led by U.S. Senators and Ohio officials.
These measures include provisions to improve inspection oversight for railways, further investment in trackside detectors and stricter standards for tankers.
Norfolk Southern CEO Alan Shaw, right, testifies before an Ohio Senate Railroad Safety Committee at the Statehouse in Columbus, Ohio on Tuesday
However, when he pushed for a two-person crew mandate for all trains, Shaw argued that there is no data to show that two-person crews help prevent derailments.
“We are data-driven and will follow science. And at this point I haven’t seen any data linking crew size directly to derailments,” he told the Ohio Panel.
The train that derailed in eastern Palestine had three crew members on board, including a trainee.
Still, crew size mandates have become a contentious issue after railroad workers’ unions argued that widespread job cuts across the industry over the past six years have made railroads riskier by increasing the frequency of one-man crews .
They say staff are spread too thinly after nearly a third of all rail jobs have been eliminated, and conductors in particular are struggling with fatigue from being on call 24 hours a day.
A black cloud rises over eastern Palestine, Ohio, on February 6 as a result of the controlled burning of part of the derailed Norfolk-Southern trains carrying dangerous chemicals
Shaw testified Tuesday before an Ohio Senate railroad safety panel, where he was faced with wide-ranging questions about the eastern Palestine derailment
Ohio lawmakers recently passed a two-person crew mandate for trains running through the state, though the legality of the rule remains a matter of debate.
The Ohio Railroad Association, a trade group, has argued that several of the measures are anticipated by federal law. Lawmakers say the General Assembly can implement statewide safeguards to help protect voters.
Bipartisan legislation introduced in Congress after the derailment would require train crews to remain two people.
The Federal Railroad Administration is also considering a rule that would require a two-person crew in most cases.
No one was injured in the East Palestine derailment, but half of East Palestine’s nearly 5,000 residents were evacuated for days.