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Operation Lifesaver Urging Safety at Rail Crossings

By John Nixon

04/25/2012

You may have heard the radio spots or seen the new posters reminding everyone to be safe at railroad crossings. A special emphasis is being made currently since farmers are headed to the fields for planting.
Operation Lifesaver is a non-profit international public education program developed to help put an end to collisions, deaths and injuries at railroad crossings. Tom Hillyard, one of the Operation Lifesaver presenters for the Union Pacific says the press is on to remind farmers to be on the lookout for trains when they come to a crossing. ( play audio :16 seconds )
Hillyard is on a train most days and has been involved in train collisions with vehicles. He says there is not a more helpless feeling when you are on a train and you see a motorist try to cross when they shouldn’t. ( play audio :30 seconds )
When he is not on the train, Hillyard can often be found conducting Operation Lifesaver training courses. He says the presentations can be made to any group that is interested be it youth or adults. ( play audio :23 seconds )
The website is www.oli.org.
Statistics show in 2011 there were 265 highway-rail grade crossing fatalities. 13 occurred in Kansas and 12 in Missouri ranking the states 4th and 5th in the number of rail crossing fatalities.

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