MISSOURI STATE HIGHWAY PATROL
a division of the
DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY
Troop C Headquarters â 891 Technology Drive â Weldon Spring, MO 63304

News Release

For further information please contact: Trooper Juston Wheetley
C-532013-1 (636) 300-2800

May 3, 2013
EMPHASIS: Troop C to Participate In Railroad Safety Activities on Crossing Awareness Day

Captain Ronald S. Johnson, commanding officer of Troop C, Weldon Spring, announces that on May 8-9, 2013, Troop C will be working with members of the Missouri Operation Lifesaver program in St Charles and St Louis counties to raise the awareness level for railroad crossing safety and trespass prevention. To accomplish this, law enforcement officers and Operation Lifesaver team members will visit with motorists briefly in advance of certain railroad crossings. Team members will be reminding drivers about railroad safety tips as they approach crossings throughout the counties. Additionally, an Officer on the Train project is being conducted in conjunction with Crossing Awareness Day. The Operation Lifesaver's team members are volunteers who will join troopers with the Missouri State Highway Patrol, officers with the St Peters Police Department, Kirkwood Police Department, Webster Groves Police Department, and representatives from Norfolk Southern, BNSF Railway, Union Pacific Railroad, Missouri Department of Transportation, and Federal Railroad Administration.

Operation Lifesaver statistics show that over the past two years in the Troop C area, four crossing crashes have occurred in St. Charles and St. Louis counties, resulting in one injury. In addition, five trespass incidents resulted in six fatalities.
Operation Lifesaver programs and partners across the U.S. also will celebrate International Level Crossing Awareness Day (ILCAD, www.ilcad.org/ILCAD-2013) on May 7 with a variety of events to illustrate the importance of safe behavior at grade crossings and around train tracks. This year, 45 countries worldwide are holding events in observance of ILCAD.
For more information on Operation Lifesaver, contact Rick Mooney, Missouri Operation Lifesaver state coordinator, at 573-634-4113 (office) or 573-230-3284 (cell). Or visit the state website at www.ShowMeOL.org or the national website at www.oli.org.
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