Brightline train hits, injures pedestrian in Broward County

A pedestrian was hit and injured by a Brightline train in Broward County shortly before 8 p.m. Thursday night, according to the Wilton Manors Police Department.

It's the fourth time this year that Brightline has hit a pedestrian or bicyclist and the sixth time since the passenger railroad began test runs.

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Thursday's incident occurred at the 1200 block of Northeast 24th Street in Wilton Manors, just north of Fort Lauderdale, said Officer Jennifer Bickhardt, police department spokeswoman.

The pedestrian was "hit by a Brightline train and transported to Broward General Hospital with injuries that do not appear to be life threatening," Bickhardt said Thursday night.

The police department has blocked off the area and is continuing to gather information about the incident, Bickhardt said.

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On Jan. 12 — the eve of Brightline starting limited service between West Palm Beach and Fort Lauderdale — pedestrian Melissa Lavell was killed after apparently trying to beat a Brightline train at Northeast Sixth Avenue in Boynton Beach.

Then, five days later, bicyclist Jeffrey King was hit and killed by an oncoming Brightline train — also in Boynton Beach — after biking around the lowered safety gates, according to video of the incident.

A third person was struck by a Brightline train in Fort Lauderdale Jan. 19 and sustained non-life-threatening injuries, Fort Lauderdale police said.

In the wake of these incidents, Brightline has maintained its railroad meets or exceeds safety standards, but has committed to increasing railroad-safety education and outreach.

"The fact that these incidents are completely avoidable is what makes them so tragic," Brightline President Patrick Goddard said at a news conference, regarding rail safety, in January. "Never try and beat a train."

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Last year, two people were struck and killed during Brightline test runs. Those deaths were ruled suicides.

Brightline's $3.1 billion project will expand service to Miami later this year, but has not begun construction north of West Palm Beach. Extension of full service through the Treasure and Space coasts and on to Orlando International Airport should be completed by January 2021, officials have said.