MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Two Bartlett business owners who witnessed the aftermath of the crash between a train and a funeral home limo Thursday shared their accounts of what they saw.
Six family members who were on their way to a funeral are recovering after a collision with a CSX train in Bartlett. The cause is still unclear.
CSX is investigating the incident, but a nearby business owner who says she saw the aftermath of the crash told WREG she thinks the funeral escort had poor judgment while directing the funeral home limo.
“All of a sudden, we heard a really, really loud crash,” said Torie Lindsey, owner of House of Exquisite Design Boutique. “And we have, like, large trucks that come and deliver to the restaurant. So, I just assumed that it was maybe one of the trucks.
“And when I went out, the train was in the middle of the intersection. It was stopped. And when I looked, it was a car that had crashed into the train,” said Lindsey.
On Thursday, a family member who attended the funeral told WREG her family saw the funeral escorts cross the railroad track just before the crash.
WREG spoke to another business owner off-camera who says she also saw a funeral escort, but she does not think he used his safest judgment.
The lack of crossing gate arms on the railroad is also a concern.
“Right now, we only have the flashing lights. The train is really loud, and they have the whistles, but I think it will be, you know, even more helpful if they have the arms down so people can see that the train is coming,” said Lindsey.
However, the City of Bartlett says the railroad crossing is safe and incidents like this rarely happen.
Loved ones created a GoFundMe for one of the victims, Katelynn Gooden, a single mother. According to GoFundMe, she now has a severe fracture and is unable to walk or work.
For the GoFundMe for one of the victims in the crash, click here.