On Tuesday, January 24, 2017, at 8:17 P.M., the Nevada Public Safety Department responded to a motor vehicle collision involving a vehicle and train at the railroad tracks on 6th Street near the intersection of E Avenue in Nevada, Iowa.
The medium sized sport utility vehicle driven by Kathleen Orcutt (age 64) of rural Nevada was southbound on 6th Street when she noticed the train traveling West on the tracks. The driver attempted to stop and slid into the path of the train. The car was drug approximately 300 feet west along the tracks before going over a steep embankment. Several crossing arms including the crossing arms at this location were not operational because of on-scene maintenance taking place at the time of the accident. Union Pacific owns the railroad and train involved. The railroad had crossing guards with stop signs posted at all affected crossings.
Orcutt was alone in the vehicle and was transported to Iowa Methodist Medical Center in Des Moines for further treatment. Her condition at the time of this release is not known but is not believed to be life threatening. The public was not in danger during the incident and there was no derailment of the train. The cause of the collision is under further investigation by Nevada Public Safety officials.
Other agencies assisting Nevada Police and Fire Departments were: Story County Sheriff’s Office, Story County Ambulance, and officials from Union Pacific Rail.
