A man died after being struck by a Music City Star commuter train in Donelson.
MTA officials confirmed the train was traveling its regular service to downtown Nashville when the person was struck. The incident happened at 7:20 a.m. during the middle of the route.
Happening Now: @NashvilleFD responding to a pedestrian hit by a train in Donelson. pic.twitter.com/Kzu174l9Y1
— Nashville Fire Dept (@NashvilleFD) August 29, 2017
Metro Nashville Police officials said the man was walking along the tracks and was trying to cross the Stones River on the trestle. They said he may have had his back to the train.
The conductor saw him and blew the whistle. Headphones were recovered from the scene but it's unclear if he was wearing them at the time of the collision.
Stephanie Koebel was riding the train into work when the collision happened.
"The conductor or one of the employees came on the PA system and just said we were going to be stopped for a little while," Koebel said. "The next time the crew got on the intercom you could tell something in their voice was wrong."
Koebel said RTA crews worked quickly and calmly to evacuate about 300 people, some disabled, to a second train. Once passengers arrived downtown, shuttle busses took them to their final destinations.
"Everybody was pretty quiet, it was pretty somber," Koebel said. "There were some who were pretty emotionally distraught over it."
Nashville Fire Department officials located the victim in the river. Police said he has not been identified.
This is what the Music City Star looked like as people switched trains after a pedestrian was hit and killed. @NC5pic.twitter.com/32fLaHF5XN
— Sarah McCarthy NC5 (@SMcCarthyNC5) August 29, 2017
Approximately 300 people were on board at the time of the incident. Those passengers were transported to a shuttle and taken to their destination. MTA officials said they have about 1,000 passengers a day.
"Our deepest sympathies go out to the deceased and their family," MTA officials said in a statement.
MTA routes would operate as normal for the rest of the day. Officials said they do not anticipate any delays.
