LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Another life was lost at the Pope Lick train trestle on Sunday, and members of the community are speaking up about the danger surrounding the track. This is not the first time that this tragic story has been told.
Police responded to a call around 9:30 p.m. to reports of two girls hit by the train while on the tracks of the trestle. One was killed, she was identified as 15-year-old Savannah Bright, and the other was sent to the hospital in serious condition.
“I don't understand that at all. I just cannot fathom why anyone would do that,” said Richard Mayes, who walks the path at Pope Lick Park several times a week.
Police are still looking for reasons as to why the girls were on the tracks after dark, while people like Mayes question the risk, as well.
“Maybe a dare, some sort of club initiation or something, I don't know. I can't imagine why they would do it,” he said.
There are at least two signs warning visitors that it is an active train trestle, as well as a fence blocking entry to the tracks.
“It’s a difficult walk up the hill to get to where you can get onto the bridge,” Mayes explained. “I think the railroad has done everything they can to prevent people from doing this sort of thing.”
Despite those warnings, deadly incidents have happened before. In 2016, a woman fell to her death during a hunt for a mythical monster that’s said to be half man and half goat.
“That was just a superstition, if you go across the bridge, the Pope Lick Monster you will see.”
Others explained they thought the track was abandoned.
“Even if it's not being used, it would not be a safe thing to do,” Mayes said.
He’s hoping the tragedy might teach others not to challenge the trestle that's taking lives.
Editor's Note: We have rephrased the headline to better communicate the focus of this story.
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Contact reporter Heather Fountaine at hfountaine@whas11.com and follow her on Twitter (@WHAS11Heather) and Facebook.