A 62-year-old man tragically died this week after attempting to drive around lowered railroad crossing arms in North Carolina.
Dwayne Alton Bryant was behind the wheel of a Toyota Corolla in his hometown of Clayton on Monday, Aug. 25, around 10:50 a.m. local time when he turned left onto Central Street and tried to bypass the gates at the railroad crossing, according to NBC affiliate WRAL, ABC affiliate WTVD and The News & Observer.
Authorities confirmed that the crossing arms were down in both directions and lights were flashing at the time.
Bryant did not make it through the crossing. An eastbound Norfolk Southern cargo train struck the left side of his vehicle, which then rolled over and traveled approximately 300 feet, the Observer reported.
No one aboard the train was injured. The crash, captured on police traffic cameras, is under investigation, WTVD reported.
The Clayton Police Department did not immediately respond to requests for additional comment.
Shortly after the collision, police confirmed that emergency crews were on the scene. Officers asked the public to “avoid this area if at all possible.”
Earlier this month, 21-year-old EllaRyan Marie Miller, a student at the University of North Carolina at Wilmington, also died after being struck by a train while crossing the tracks in Clayton, WRAL, WTVD and the Observer previously reported. She had just finished her summer internship and was walking to her car in a nearby parking lot when the incident occurred.
