Shocking video from a Texas rescue crew shows a freight train plowing into an unoccupied pickup truck that had just been freed from a fatal collision.
The crash occurred Wednesday morning while the Texas Department of Public Safety was investigating the earlier incident.
It comes at a time of renewed focus on rail accidents in the aftermath of the Norfolk Southern disaster in East Palestine, Ohio.
According to officials, the previous crash involved a Honda minibus and a Ford F250 towing a trailer, with the Ford landing on the rails.
Video from Odessa Fire Rescue shows a train plowing into an unoccupied pickup truck that was just involved in a fatal accident.
Shocking video from a Texas rescue crew shows a freight train plowing into an unoccupied pickup truck that had just been freed from a deadly 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 train tracks.
The minibus driver, 86-year-old John Edward Grube, died at the scene of the accident but was nowhere 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 council.
Jesus Guadalupe Laredo, 28, was driving the truck and was taken to a local hospital in stable condition.
“The person in that truck got out in time and no more [further] injured,” the city of Odessa said in a Facebook post.
It comes just months after the Ohio disaster, which has put Americans on high alert for freight train accidents.
The crash occurred Wednesday morning while the Texas Department of Public Safety was investigating the earlier incident
According to officials, the previous crash involved a Honda minibus and a Ford F250 towing a trailer, with the Ford landing on the rails
Norfolk Southern has pledged more than $30 million in funds to support the people of Eastern Palestine, first responders and community organizations, including $13 million in support to more than 7,600 families.
However, the company also faces a lawsuit from Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost for costs associated with cleaning up the toxic chemical and environmental damage.
The federal government has also sued the railroad for environmental damage caused by the Feb. 3 derailment.
Shaw said he supports federal efforts to strengthen railroad safety legislation, led by Ohio’s U.S. senators and representatives.
These measures include provisions to increase inspection oversight for railways, further investment in roadside detectors and stricter standards for road tankers.
Norfolk Southern CEO Alan Shaw, right, testifies before an Ohio Senate railroad safety panel Tuesday at the State House in Columbus, Ohio
However, when pushed for a two-man mandate for all trains, Shaw argued that there is no data to support two-man crews helping to prevent derailments.
‘We are data-driven and we will follow the science. And at this point, I have not seen any data directly linking crew size to derailments,” he told the Ohio panel.
The train that derailed in eastern Palestine was carrying three crew members, including a trainee.
Yet crew-sized mandates have become a contentious topic after railroad workers’ unions claimed widespread job losses in the industry over the past six years have made railroads riskier by increasing the frequency of one-man shifts.
They say workers are spread too thin after nearly a third of all railroad jobs have been eliminated and train crews in particular are suffering from fatigue as they are available 24/7.
A black plume rises over East Palestine, Ohio, on Feb. 6, due to a controlled burning of part of the derailed Norfolk Southern trains carrying hazardous chemicals
Shaw testified Tuesday before an Ohio Senate railroad safety panel, where he was faced with varying questions about the derailment in eastern Palestine
Lawmakers in Ohio recently passed a two-man crew mandate for trains running across the state, though the legality of the rule remains under debate.
The Ohio Railroad Association, a trade group, has argued that several of the measures are prevented by federal law. Lawmakers say the General Assembly can take statewide precautions to help protect voters.
Bipartisan legislation introduced in Congress after the derailment requires train crews to continue to have two people.
The Federal Railroad Administration is also considering a rule requiring a crew of two in most cases.
No one was injured in the derailment in eastern Palestine, but half of eastern Palestine’s nearly 5,000 residents were evacuated for days.