Teen Survives After Being Hit by Train

An 18-year-old Oxnard man was struck by a train engine Thursday as he stood talking to friends and waiting to cross railroad tracks at the intersection of Hemlock Street and Patterson Road, authorities said.

Lundy Joel Prince suffered only bruises and back pain in the 2 p.m. incident in west Oxnard. He was taken by ambulance to St. Johns Regional Medical Center where he was treated and released, police officials said.

The train engine, a locomotive owned by the Ventura County Railroad Co. in Oxnard, had left Port Hueneme and was traveling north at about 15 mph, said Sgt. Fred Sedillos.

The railroad crossing arms were down and red lights warning people not to pass were activated, said Police Cmdr. Bob Elder. The conductor blew the engine’s horn repeatedly to warn Prince, Elder said.

“He apparently didn’t see the train,” Elder said.

Prince was standing next to the tracks, which parallel a small canal and a row of single family homes, and facing away from the engine when he was knocked to the ground, witnesses said.

“Being as he was struck by a locomotive, at what we understand was slow speeds, we took a lot of precautions,” said Capt. Mike O’Malia of the Oxnard Fire Department.

Emergency crews used braces to secure Prince’s neck and back. O’Malia said Prince suffered no cuts and had good motor reflexes when paramedics arrived.

The accident occurred only a few minutes before students were dismissed from nearby Marina West Elementary School, school workers said. A school crossing guard is stationed at the railroad crossing because dozens of children walk through the railroad intersection daily.