The State - News from Aug. 19, 1988

Amtrak passenger service was disrupted for several hours Thursday because of a freight train derailment near Camp Pendelton that occurred when engineers tried to avoid hitting a man, officials said. The 5 a.m. accident, in which four cars left the track, blocked the main line used for Amtrak’s Los Angeles-to-San Diego service, said Santa Fe spokesman Mike Martin in Los Angeles. Passengers were shuttled by bus between San Juan Capistrano and Oceanside to circumvent the derailment, causing about an hour delay for the travelers, Amtrak officials said. Cranes were brought in to lift the loaded flat cars, which had remained upright, back onto the track, Martin said. The man on the tracks, Raymundo Marquez, 21, suffered a foot injury, but it was not immediately clear if he was struck by the Santa Fe freight train, Martin said. Marquez was reported in fair condition at Tri-City Medical Center in Oceanside after undergoing surgery, a hospital spokeswoman said.