INNISFAIL – A man is in serious condition in a Calgary hospital following a crash this morning (Jan. 10) between a motor vehicle and a train in the northeast part of town.
Innisfail RCMP Staff Sgt. Chris Matechuk, whose members attended the scene, said police initially received the call at 10:13 a.m. about a crash between a motor vehicle and a train.
Gary Leith, fire chief with the Innisfail Fire Department, said a westbound single vehicle heading in a direction towards Discovery Wildlife Park collided with a northbound CP train at the rail crossing at Highway 2A.
Leith said his personnel were the first to arrive on scene and they established contact with the injured motorist to assess initial injuries. He said the injured man was trapped and injured.
Leith said emergency responders then used hydraulic equipment to remove the injured man from the motor vehicle before he could be treated by EMS.
He said a decision was soon made to contact STARS air ambulance. The injured man, who is listed in serious condition, was then flown from the scene to Calgary’s Foothills Medical Centre.
Leith said emergency responders were forced to close the north and southbound lanes of Highway 2A at the collision location for just over an hour to enable STARS to land and then transport the injured man to the Calgary hospital.
He said the injured man’s vehicle is considered a write-off. He said early Monday afternoon that the train has since left the scene to continue to its original destination.
“It was held in position until such time it was inspected and checked as was the track, and they were given the all clear,” said Leith.
Matechuk said no charges are expected from the crash. However, the joint investigation into the crash by Innisfail RCMP and CP Rail Police is continuing.
