Rail Safety Week Celebrated by Wisconsin’s National Railway Museum

Fox II News recently reported on Wisconsin’s National Railway Museum hosting a Rail Safety Week event, as proclaimed by Governor Scott Walker. Law enforcement authorities were on hand to make safety presentations and educate the public on the potential dangers of railways. During 2015, two people were killed and another 12 people were injured at railroad crossings in the state of Wisconsin. Another three people sustained injuries and eight people were killed after trespassing on railroad tracks. Law enforcement characterized all of these injuries and deaths as wholly preventable. With 4,500 railroad crossings throughout the state of Wisconsin, there is ample reason to educate individuals on the perils of these railroads.

A national organization whose goal is to reduce or eliminate railroad crossing accidents, Operation Lifesaver, made a stop at the state-sponsored event. The group hopes to raise awareness about railroad crossing dangers and teach individuals to avoid trespassing on railroad tracks. In many cases, individuals may not even realize that they are trespassing when accidents on railroads occur. For instance, the group reminded local photographers and high schoolers to avoid using railroad tracks for senior photos. The group reports that a person or a vehicle is hit by a train about every three hours in the United States, facts which form the basis of its “See Tracks? Think Train” campaign.

Some of the safety tips offered by Operation Lifesaver include the following:

• The only safe place to cross railroad tracks is at a designated railroad crossing
• Railroad tracks, trestles, and rail yards are all private property; you can be criminally prosecuted for entering this property uninvited
• A train can take a mile or more to stop, so a train is likely to be unable to stop in time if the engineer suddenly spots a vehicle or individual on the tracks

At Boller & Vaughan, suffering injuries in any type of accident can be both physically and emotional painful. We are here to take some of the burden off your shoulders by allowing us to pursue any legal claims that are available to you and work toward much-needed and much-deserved compensation. As skilled Madison personal injury lawyers, we are here to help you through this ordeal from a legal perspective, while you concentrate on healing yourself and your family by receiving the proper care and moving forward with your life.