A Florida man was struck and killed by a freight train Saturday as he crossed the tracks and did not see the crossing arms because he was using his cellphone with earphones, the Florida Highway Patrol said.
Dustin R. Pierce, 28, of Valrico, was killed as he walked into the path of a 63-car CSX train that was traveling north, The Tampa Bay Times reported.
Pierce was walking west on a sidewalk on State Road 60, a major highway located 20 miles east of Tampa, when the train hit him, the Times reported. A witness told the newspaper that the horn sounded before the train crossed the highway.
In a report, troopers said Pierce “Failed to observe the down crossing arms due to utilizing his cellphone with earphones.”
The highway was closed for two hours, WTSP reported.
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