Men Jump Into Clifton Ravine to Avoid Oncoming VRE Train
Incident occurred about 8 p.m. near Hemlock Regional Park, reports say.
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Three men facing an oncoming train on a railroad bridge near Yates Ford Road jumped into a ravine Wednesday night to avoid being hit near Hemlock Regional Park in Clifton, according to news reports.
A medic on the train assisted one of the men until help arrived from Fairfax County Fire and Rescue, according to a report from NBC-4 TV. Medic crews apparently had a tough time finding the men because it was a dark wooded area.
The train, #337, was the Virginia Railway Express (VRE) Manassas line, which had departed from Union Station in D.C. at 7:50 p.m. Wednesday. The accident reportedly delayed the train for more than an hour.
Channel 9 reported the injured man hurt his back and was medevaced from the scene to Inova Fairfax Hospital.
Correction: A previous version of this article indicated that two men were involved in the incident. Three men were involved.
Mike
10:40 am on Thursday, April 5, 2012
Hopefully trespassing charges are pending.
Mary Ann Barton
8:56 am on Saturday, April 7, 2012
Hi Mike, Fairfax County Police say that Norfolk Southern Railroad Police dept. is in charge of anything like that. The Norfolk media rep has not responded to a phone call or an e-mail asking about that. Will keep you posted though.
Mike
10:30 am on Wednesday, April 11, 2012
Thanks, Mary Ann. I haven't heard anything, and not to minimize the injuries suffered... There are too many cases of people trespassing on railroads that aren't lucky enough to get away with a trip to the hospital. The RR police should take advantage of any opportunity to remind people that walking on a RR is dangerous AND illegal.
Rachel Hatzipanagos
7:56 pm on Wednesday, April 11, 2012
Hi Mike, just to give you an update, the men were charged. Here's the latest story: http://patch.com/A-swNP