An Amtrak Downeaster train is stopped on the tracks in Biddeford on Sunday after an accident that killed a pedestrian. LIZ GOTTHELF/Journal Tribune
BIDDEFORD — Police have identified the pedestrian who was struck and killed by a train on Sunday in Biddeford.
Around 4 p.m. on Sunday the Biddeford dispatch center received call from Amtrak Railroad dispatch that a southbound train had struck a pedestrian, according to a press release from Biddeford Deputy Police Chief JoAnne Fisk.
Dennis MacGillivray, 42, of Biddeford was walking on the southbound tracks in the area between Westmore Avenue and Pomerleau Street when he was fatally struck by a train, Fisk said. The area is near a business park.
The Amtrak Downeaster train 696 was carrying 87 passengers, said Amtrak spokeswoman Beth Toll in an email. None of the crew or passengers were injured, she said. The train was stopped for about three hours.
Around 7 p.m., the train was released from the scene, but the railroad tracks were closed pending further investigation.
The Amtrak Downeaster provides rail service from Brunswick to Boston. Local passengers enter and depart the train at the Saco train station.
Each year, about 2,000 people are killed or injured in grade crossing and trespassing incidents nationwide, said Toll.
Walking on the train tracks without permission is illegal and punishable under state law by a fine.
Rail Safety Organization Operation Lifesaver advises that all train tracks are private property. Not only is walking on train tracks illegal trespass, but it is also highly dangerous.
It takes a freight train traveling at 55 mph more than a mile, or the length of 18 football fields, to stop, and trains can not stop quickly enough to avoid a collision, according to Operation Lifesaver.
Biddeford Police and Railroad Police continue to investigate the death, Fisk said.
In April 2012, Sean Page of Biddeford, 40, died when he was struck by a southbound Amtrak Downeaster train at the intersection of West Cutts and Cutts streets in Biddeford.
— Staff Writer Liz Gotthelf can be reached at 780-9015 or by email at egotthelf@journaltribune.com.
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