Train kills man who was sitting on railroad tracks in Encinitas

A train hit and killed a 40-year-old man sitting on the railroad tracks in Encinitas early Saturday, the San Diego County Sheriff’s Department said.

Witnesses say the man was sitting on the tracks with his head in his hands and “looking downward” about 1:45 a.m., just moments before he was struck by a northbound Burlington Northern Santa Fe freight train, the sheriff’s department said.

The engineer had blown the train’s horn and applied the brakes but was unable to stop. The man was declared dead at the scene.

The incident marked the second person hit and killed by a train this week in northern San Diego County.

On Thursday night, a 22-year-old man was struck and killed by a northbound train in Carlsbad. According to witnesses, the man ignored the crossing warning system and attempted to cross the tracks as the train approached.

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