Oakland Police Department Press Release
On August 1, 2011 at approximately 5:30 p.m. the Oakland Police Department received a report that a pedestrian had been struck by a train in the vicinity of West Oakland Avenue. Officers were dispatched to the scene along with a paramedic unit from Valley Hospital and members of the Oakland First Aid Squad and the Oakland Volunteer Fire Department. Upon arrival of emergency services, two juvenile victims were located adjacent to the railroad tracks just west of the train trestle that crosses the Ramapo River. Both juveniles aged 13 of Oakland, appeared to have sustained moderate, non-life threatening injuries and were transported to Hackensack University Medical Center.
The Oakland Police Department received assistance in the investigation of the incident from members of the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office Fatal Accident Investigation Unit and the New York Susquehanna & Western Railway.
The investigation revealed that the NYS&W train was traveling westbound on the tracks when both the engineer and the conductor observed the two juveniles walking across the train trestle. The engineer sounded numerous whistle blasts and put the train into an emergency stop as the juveniles attempted to outrun the approaching locomotive. As they neared the end of the trestle, one of the juveniles tripped and fell as the other juvenile attempted to pull him from the tracks. At the present time, it is inconclusive whether or not the juveniles were actually struck by the train or sustained their injuries as a result of their fall from the tracks.
No further information is available at this time as the incident remains under investigation.
So when the teacher asks to write an essay on what you did on summer break, I think these boys will have something to write about. Just happy for all involved that lives were not lost. We have enough memorials at RR crossings in the area already.