A 21-year-old University of Arkansas student who was struck by a freight train early last Thursday morning is still clinging to life in critical condition. It is believed he was following the train tracks back to his fraternity house after leaving a bar. Authorities and the train’s engineer believe the man may have passed out or fallen asleep on the tracks.

The train saw the man on the tracks, tried to alert him by blowing the whistle, but ultimately ran over him. It takes trains almost a mile for them to come to a complete stop. The man was found beneath the train’s third engine by authorities just after 2:00am. They had to back the train up to get to the victim.
The man, a junior kinesiology student, lost his left hand at the wrist and is suffering severe head and body trauma.

Though accidents like this do not happen very often, there has been a rash of them across the country lately. Authorities have once again had to tell the public that it is against the law to walk on or even near train tracks. You should also be able to listen for oncoming trains, and not wear headphones with music playing too loud. You should also not attempt to circumvent gates that have come down across roads, or try to beat the train by crossing the tracks.

If you or a loved one has been injured when hit by a train, please contact an experienced personal injury lawyer in your area.