2008 Woodie Awards
A Night on Fullerton's Tracks Turns Bloody
A 16-year-old girl was struck Saturday night by a freight train at Fullerton's Train Station.
Andrew S. Lay
Issue date: 9/13/06 Section: News
It happened so fast that most people didn't even realize that someone had been terribly injured. Only a quick crunch and a moan could be heard over the massive roar of the passing freight train.
A group gathered quickly around Morena and her 14-year-old friend Jared.
Old and young alike crowded around the two, standing quietly helpless as Morena writhed in pain and Jared cried fruitlessly for help.
Friends standing nearby called for an ambulance and one unidentified man ran to assist the young girl. He tied a tourniquet around her injured leg and attempted to comfort Morena until Police and Paramedics arrived several minutes later.
As the paramedics arrived on the scene they asked young Jared if he was alright. "I'm fine, I'm fine, please, help her," said Jared.
Morena was then taken to UCI Medical Center in Orange, CA, where she was treated for a major laceration to her right leg and a broken tibia. Jared walked away with only minor injuries.
According to Lieutenant Kevin Hamilton, a watch commander at Fullerton Police Department, the injury was sustained as Morena dangled her feet over the edge of the loading platform outside of Fullerton's Santa Express Cafe, a small cafe that caters to travelers and has live music on Friday and Saturday nights.
The driver of the train reported to police that he blasted his horn several times in warning, but the two teenagers refused to move.
Jared, the 14-year-old boy who was also involved in the accident, was injured after the train had struck Morena and threw her body into his.
The Santa Fe Depot has long been known around Fullerton as a hang out for punks, street kids and transients.
Tragic as the event may be, the two underage teens had been drinking that night, and the blame has yet to have been rested on the shoulders of any adults, whether present at the accident site or not.
Lt. Hamilton said, "There have been incidents where people have committed suicide by throwing themselves in front of a train, but this is the first I've heard of someone being accidentally struck by a train in Fullerton."
A group gathered quickly around Morena and her 14-year-old friend Jared.
Old and young alike crowded around the two, standing quietly helpless as Morena writhed in pain and Jared cried fruitlessly for help.
Friends standing nearby called for an ambulance and one unidentified man ran to assist the young girl. He tied a tourniquet around her injured leg and attempted to comfort Morena until Police and Paramedics arrived several minutes later.
As the paramedics arrived on the scene they asked young Jared if he was alright. "I'm fine, I'm fine, please, help her," said Jared.
Morena was then taken to UCI Medical Center in Orange, CA, where she was treated for a major laceration to her right leg and a broken tibia. Jared walked away with only minor injuries.
According to Lieutenant Kevin Hamilton, a watch commander at Fullerton Police Department, the injury was sustained as Morena dangled her feet over the edge of the loading platform outside of Fullerton's Santa Express Cafe, a small cafe that caters to travelers and has live music on Friday and Saturday nights.
The driver of the train reported to police that he blasted his horn several times in warning, but the two teenagers refused to move.
Jared, the 14-year-old boy who was also involved in the accident, was injured after the train had struck Morena and threw her body into his.
The Santa Fe Depot has long been known around Fullerton as a hang out for punks, street kids and transients.
Tragic as the event may be, the two underage teens had been drinking that night, and the blame has yet to have been rested on the shoulders of any adults, whether present at the accident site or not.
Lt. Hamilton said, "There have been incidents where people have committed suicide by throwing themselves in front of a train, but this is the first I've heard of someone being accidentally struck by a train in Fullerton."
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