Train hits Coca-Cola truck in Fremont
By Ethan Smith
Published in News on June 8, 2017 10:19 AM
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News-Argus/CASEY MOZINGO
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News-Argus/CASEY MOZINGO
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News-Argus/CASEY MOZINGO
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News-Argus/CASEY MOZINGO
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News-Argus/CASEY MOZINGO
UPDATE -- One person was taken to the hospital with minor injuries after a CSX Train carrying 81 loaded train cars collided with a Coca-Cola truck at East Main and South Goldsboro streets in Fremont around 9:30 a.m. today.
Fremont Police Chief Paul Moats said the driver of the Coca-Cola truck suffered "very minor injuries" and was taken to Wayne UNC Health Care to be checked out as a precaution.
The driver's name was not immediately available.
Moats said the conductor and engineer of the train, identified as Thomas Copeland and Jeff Lamm, respectively, were checked out by Wayne County EMS and declined to be taken to the hospital.
All railroad crossings in Fremont along U.S. 117 -- except at Ballance Road -- were blocked after the train came to a stop approximately 200 yards past the point of impact.
Copeland said the truck turned in front of the train at East Main Street and South Goldsboro Street when the train was approximately 100 feet away.
Copeland added that Lamm activated all of the train's brakes as soon as the collision happened to bring the train to a stop.
"It's hard to stop a train," Copeland said.
He said the train was heading to Warsaw.
The train collided with the truck on the truck's back end, avoiding colliding with the cab where the driver was.
Moats said charges were pending against the driver of the Coca-Cola truck.
Soft drink bottles littered the roadway after the wreck sent them in all directions.
People used brooms to sweep the roadway clean while authorities cordoned off the intersection with yellow police tape.
Three other cars were involved in the wreck.
Moats said they were all parked near the tracks, but were unoccupied when the truck and train collided.
Traffic was rerouted in the area, with drivers having to take Ballance Road, which connects U.S. 117 and South Goldsboro Street, to enter and exit the town.
At the time of this report, the train remains stopped on the tracks and intersections remain blocked.
This story will be updated as more details become available.
PREVIOUS REPORT - A train hit a Coca-Cola truck on South Goldsboro and Main streets in Fremont around 10 a.m.
Three other vehicles were involved in the wreck after the truck hit cars that were parked on the street.
Traffic has been diverted to Ballance Road, which connects to Goldsboro Street and U.S. 117.
There is no information currently about any injuries related to the collision.
This story will be updated as more details surface.