Car struck by BNSF train in Bellingham after getting stuck on tracks, but driver uninjured
A driver whose car was struck by a BNSF Railway train after become stuck on tracks in Bellingham Thursday morning, managed to escape without injury.
Bellingham Police and Fire were called to the 600 block of Wharf Street near Cornwall Beach for the report that a train had hit a car, Lt. Claudia Murphy told The Bellingham Herald in an email Thursday evening.
The investigating officer determined that the driver had misjudged the location of the road and tracks as they were driving down Wharf Street, Murphy reported, and the car got stuck on the tracks with the left front tire over the top of the rail.
While the car was stuck on the track, the driver saw a BNSF Railway train approaching, according to Murphy, and safely exited the car.
The train collided with the car, which came to rest approximately 200 feet south of the point of impact, Murphy reported, and the train stopped shortly after the collision.
“There were no injuries, just property damage to the car,” Murphy wrote.
According to the Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission crash statistics, there were 32 fatal collisions involving trains in Washington state in 2021, but none involved a car. Two occurred in Whatcom County on Jan. 26 and Sept. 26, and both involved trespassing on BNSF Railway property.
