Woman Killed in TRAX Accident

Woman Killed in TRAX Accident


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Kimberly Houk reportingA 38 year old woman was hit and killed tonight by a TRAX train.

She slipped underneath it, while trying to get on the train to go to the University of Utah.

Police say the woman approached the train from the street, as it was pulling away from the boarding platform. She was trying to get the door to open, when something went wrong and she slipped.

Police say the woman was in the crosswalk, walking with a group of friends. They were all on their way to the football game.

When the woman approached the moving train -- police say she was trying to get the door of the train open -- when right in front of her friends, she slipped underneath the train.

Lt. Robert Linton/Salt Lake City Police: "We have evidence that she may have been dragged a little bit."

Police are still trying to figure out what happened Saturday night at 4th South and 9th East.

It's the 4th accident this week involving Trax trains on 4th South, but the first this week involving a pedestrian and a fatality.

Lt. Robert Linton/Salt Lake City Police: “It's just so critical that we pay attention to the signs. The electronic signs - the don't walk or walk signs."

Police say the woman and a group of her friends were crossing the street to get to the train. The TRAX train was getting ready to move, she tapped on the door, but it was on the side of the train where the door wasn't going to open.

Andrea Packer/UTA: “The doors do open on both sides, but the doors would not have opened on the wrong side of the train - it would've only opened on the platform side. "

Lt. Robert Linton/Salt Lake City Police: "Apparently her friends were telling her that she couldn't get in the train on that side, and the train started moving, and it appears that she just slipped and fell. "

Police say the wet, rainy weather created slick roads... and was probably the reason the woman slipped underneath the train.

The operator of the train didn't realize it had happened... and the train continued to it's University stop.

But the accident did happen in front of the woman's friends.

Lt. Robert Linton/Salt Lake City Police: "As you can imagine they are very distraught."

Police have yet to release the woman's identity.

They're still trying to notify her family about what happened here tonight.

TRAX Trains have been running in Salt Lake County for the past 5 years. In that time - Seven pedestrians have died after being hit by a train. Four of those deaths were suicides.

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