HUTCHINSON, Kan. – The report of a Hutchinson man driving eratic led to him going eastbound between the tracks on the BNSF Rail line.
Apparently 68-year-old Jack Buyer saw police had turned on their lights when they spotted him at around 2nd and Poplar. He then turned east traveling at a high rate of speed between the two tracks.
Police not wanting to follow him, decided to go around to try to cut him off. When an officer turned on Plum, all they saw was a lot of dust and debris flying.
According to Hutchinson Police Captain Troy Hoover, Buyer got toward Plum decided to cross the north track and then struck the northwest crossing. He then went across Plum and struck a guard rail, then spun back west or turned around and tried to drive some more, but got stuck on the tracks where they found his truck west of Plum.
Hoover says he had to be flying to cause such an impact with the railroad crossing arm and pole, so much so that the crossing arm and part of the mechanical part of the pole that controls the arm ended up east of Plum (shown below).
Hoover says Buyer had some type of Diabetes issue with his blood sugar. He says there probably won’t be anything criminal involved. He did suffer some minor abrasions to his forehead as a result of the impact with the crossing pole.
Plum street was blocked from 1st to 3rd, so they could work the accident. 2nd St. was also closed from Elm to Plum. That part of 2nd St. runs parallel to the tracks.
This accident occurring around 1 p.m. Tuesday afternoon.
