The accident occurred on Friday morning, March 7. A 17-year-old boy was walking to his high school. Part of his route that day took him across the tracks in the Old Norwood Park neighborhood. On that day, his crossing occurred at the same time that a Metra train traveled down the track, striking the boy.
The boy was transported as soon as possible to Advocate Lutheran General Hospital. It wasn’t clear from the report at what time he arrived there, but he died shortly after the collision. Doctors pronounced his death at 7:27 a.m., only 37 minutes after the collision occurred.
Taft High School posted a statement on its website mourning the loss of the student that seemed to be very well liked. “He’s the kind of guy that if somebody was having a bad day, he would sit there and talk to them,” said a friend. The school provided grief counselors for those who needed to talk or work through their emotions.
This isn’t the first collision of this type involving a Taft High School student. In 2010, another boy was struck by a Metra train. That boy survived the injuries that he suffered, although they were described in the Chicago Tribune report as being serious.
Details were limited in the Chicago Tribune report. In this case, the police noted that the boy was wearing earphones at the time, speculating that he may not have heard the train approaching. Authorities noted that it was unclear if the operator had blown the horn or how fast the train was even traveling at the time. Metra spokesman Michael Gillis claimed that “the gates were active” at the time of the collision.
A personal injury or wrongful death attorney will delve deeper into possible issues of negligence to help victims or their families determine if they may have a claim for compensation, and who to name in that complaint.
Source: Chicago Tribune, “Teen dies after hit by Metra train near Taft High School,” Mitch Smith, March 7, 2014