Grain truck cut in half in Minnesota train collision

Train collisions are a rare occurrence on America’s roads, thanks to modern safety systems, improved rail infrastructure, and public awareness campaigns. However, when they do happen, the consequences can be severe due in part to the sheer size and weight of both the trains and the vehicles, as well as the potential bodily harm.

Despite the safety measures, one major collision involving a grain truck took place earlier this month near Sleepy Eye, Minnesota, and it’s gaining a lot of attention because it was caught on another vehicle’s dashcam video.

Around 2:13 p.m., police responded to numerous reports of the crash, which happened at on U.S. Highway 14. A Canadian Pacific Kansas City Railroad train traveling west collided with a 1996 International Harvester tractor-trailer driven by 24-year-old Robert Thomas Jewett of New Richland, Minnesota, while the driver attempted to make a turn into a local business off the highway.

The train was operated by 56-year-old Jeffrey Alan Schafer and 57-year-old Thomas Herman Behsman, both residents of Madison Lake, Minnesota. Sleepy Eye Ambulance emergency responders, the Sleepy Eye Fire Department, the Minnesota State Patrol, and the Brown County Sheriff’s Office came to the scene to assist. Jewett was uninjured, and both train passengers were treated at the scene for minor injuries..

Both the truck and six-car train were damaged as a result of the collision, and the Wilson grain trailer had to be rated as a complete loss.

As a result of the crash, the Brown County Sheriff’s Department issued a reminder to drivers to use railroad crossing caution. They called on drivers to slow down as they head toward crossings, come to a stop and listen for oncoming trains, and look in both directions before crossing the tracks. They also underscored obeying crossing gates and warning signs, reminding drivers to wait until gates have fully opened and warning lights have stopped flashing before crossing.

The sheriff’s department encouraged that crashes like this may be prevented through the use of caution and patience at railroad crossings. The crash is still being investigated.