Baltimore Police confirmed a man was hit by a light rail train and cut in half at 8:35 a.m. Thursday.
The accident occurred at North Howard and West Lexington Street, roughly a block south of the Lexington Market Light Rail stop. Police believe the incident occurred somewhere between Mulberry Street and Saratoga Street, with the person's body ultimately becoming dislodged from the train near West Lexington Street, Baltimore Police Chief Spokesman T.J. Smith said in an update around 10:30 a.m.
There were passengers on the train at the time of the incident, Maryland Transit Administration Public Information Officer Paul Sheppard confirmed.
Investigators are operating in a large scene that spans Howard Street from Mulberry Street south to Baltimore Street. "It's a large scene that spans several blocks," Smith said.
TRAFFIC ALERT: Howard St. CLOSED from Mulberry St. to Baltimore St. Pedestrian struck by light rail train. Pedestrian is deceased. More info to follow.@BaltimorePolice Crash Investigators primary, collaborating with @mtamarylandpic.twitter.com/S29NCGX8aX
— T.J. Smith (@TJSmithMedia) May 10, 2018
The MTA hopes to restore train service after noon, but that is contingent on the investigation.
"We have established a bus bridge to get our commuters through the downtown business area," Shepard said.
If you have video/pictures of incident, please contact crash investigators at 410-396-2606 or use the Baltimore Police Department App. Smith asked that people not share such material publicly.
“We don’t know how this incident occurred; that’s what we’re trying to find out," Smith said. "We saw some disturbing sights of what occurred on social media; completely unfair to the victim’s family, completely unfair to the public at large to see something like this.”
Authorities plan to brief the media again when they have updates to the investigation and will identify the victim after family has been contacted. In the mean time, they stressed the importance of yielding right of way to the light rail trains.
"When you see a train, you give it it’s right of way. It takes a long time for the drivers to stop one of those trains," Shepard said. "They cannot stop on a dime.”
Watch @BaltimorePolice's broadcast: Update on fatal crash investigation https://t.co/oh5KSHtXkF
— T.J. Smith (@TJSmithMedia) May 10, 2018
