Amtrak sues owner of truck hit in fatal Missouri derailment

Gustaf Kilander
·1 min read

Amtrak is suing the owner of the truck that a train hit in Missouri, leading to a fatal derailment.

The lawsuit is alleging that the driver was aware that it was unsafe to cross the tracks when he did so.

The train operator is asking for $75,000 from the Missouri contracting company after a train struck one of its dump trucks on 27 June.

The lawsuit was filed on Thursday against MS Contracting. According to Amtrak, driver Billy Dean Barton II could see that the train was on its way towards the crossing but decided to drive on anyway.

“Despite the fact that it was unsafe, careless and reckless to do so because of the clearly visible approaching Amtrak Train 4, Barton failed to yield the right of way to the approaching Amtrak Southwest Chief Train 4,” the lawsuit states, according to Insider.

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