Train kills man who was trying to get off tracks in Monroe

MONROE — A man believed to be in his late 30s was killed Tuesday morning after being struck by a train near Woods Creek in Monroe.

The incident, which slowed down the morning commute through town, was reported shortly after 6 a.m. by a crew with Burlington Northern Santa Fe.

When officers arrived, they were met by the train conductor and engineer. The conductor said he saw a man lying on the rails and attempted to stop the train, according to police. As it neared, the man tried to get up and escape but was unable to get out of the way in time, police said.

The train was stopped during the recovery effort, blocking Main Street from U.S. 2, Snohomish County Fire District 7 reported.

Monroe police, Burlington Northern Santa Fe employees and Fire District 7 crews searched the area for the man.

His body was found about 8:20 a.m., in a log jam beneath the Woods Creek trestle, Monroe police spokeswoman Debbie Willis said. A dive team recovered the body.

A second train fatality involving a pedestrian occurred in Seattle earlier Tuesday morning. In that case, Seattle police detectives were investigating the death of a man inside a train tunnel near the King Street Station. Sounder north line train service, which includes Everett, was interrupted for roughly three hours.

A Burlington Northern Santa Fe train employee called 911 around 5:40 a.m., Seattle police said.

Officers entered a train tunnel. They found the crash scene between Jackson Street and Pine Street. Collision investigators interviewed the freight train engineer and gathered additional evidence while trying to determine exactly what occurred.

There were three deaths on train tracks in Snohomish County in 2017, according to state records.

In March, a woman, 41, was struck by an Amtrak passenger train near Haines Wharf Park in Edmonds. She was walking with her husband at the time.

In April, a man was struck by a freight train along Reese Road near Wallace Creek in Sultan.

In July, a teen was killed after being hit by an Amtrak train near Silvana. The 18-year-old Marysville woman was standing on a bridge in the 1900 block of Pioneer Highway when the train came around the corner. The train was traveling about 60 mph. She died at the scene.

It was the second time in three years a teen was killed on the tracks in the unincorporated community along the Stillaguamish River. A Snohomish girl, 17, died after being hit by an Amtrak passenger train nearby in May 2015.

Eric Stevick: 425-339-3446; stevick@heraldnet.com.