SAN FRANCISCO — On Saturday, August 16, James Anderson of Salem, Oregon was fatally hit by a Bay Area Rapid Transit train. According to BART Chief Spokesperson, Linton Johnson, the man was struck after he stood on the tracks and appeared to wait for it to hit him.

Anderson, 22, worked at a local Pizza Hut in Salem and enjoyed video games, game design, cooking, and chemistry. Witnesses to the event told BART officials that Anderson did not make an attempt to move after he was aware that the train was coming towards him. Johnson reports that the BART Police Department rules whether or not this is indeed a case of suicide, and that at this point, they are saying that it “appears to be suicide.”       

“Trains come into the station at 36 miles per hour typically. They cannot stop on a dime,” said Johnson. He added, “Thus, if someone is going to stand on the train track to wait for a train to hit them, it's virtually impossible for the Train Operator to do anything about it.  Additionally, we do not encourage anyone to go onto the track way when trains are in operation. Instead we ask they call BART staff to assist them.”

Johnson relayed the difficulty of aiding or assisting a person when they purposely jump onto the tracks in front of a moving train: “If someone is intent on committing suicide and puts him/herself in front of a train seconds before it pulls into the station,” said Johnson, “there will likely never be enough time for anyone to react and alert us so we could do something about it.” The BART station was temporarily closed while authorities investigated the scene and the victim was removed from the vicinity.

The Train Operator that was conducting the train has been put on standard paid administrative leave, was given a drug test, and offered counseling as per standard procedure.