Attorney: Driver in deadly Texas parade crash 'in shock'
MIDLAND, Texas (AP) - A 50-year-old Army veteran who served in Iraq and Afghanistan was driving a parade float that investigators say edged across a railroad crossing in Texas despite warning signals of a fast approaching train, the man's attorney said Tuesday.
Four veterans were killed in the resulting collision in Midland on Thursday. Sixteen people were injured.
Dale Andrew Hayden was driving one of two flatbed trucks carrying wounded veterans and their loved ones in the procession to honor the war heroes, said Hal Brockett, Hayden's attorney.
"Words can't express the sorrow and remorse for the people who got hurt and killed," Brockett said in an interview Tuesday.
Investigators say the float began crossing the train tracks even though warning bells were sounding and the crossing lights were flashing. A Union Pacific train travelling at more than 60 mph ran into the truck as the occupants scrambled to jump to safety.
Hayden, who had a military career spanning more than three decades, now works as a truck driver for Smith Industries, an oilfield services company. Brockett said the company has placed Hayden on medical leave.
Hayden is "kind of catatonic" and not ready to be interviewed, Brockett said.
"He's just very much in shock," the lawyer said.
The San Antonio Express-News first identified Hayden as the driver.
Federal investigators on Tuesday plan to re-enact the events that led to the collision.
According to the National Transportation Safety Board, the railroad crossing warning system was activated 20 seconds before the accident, and the guardrail began to come down seven seconds after that.
But some Midland residents have said there isn't enough time between when the signal begins and the trains arrive. They say guardrails aren't completely down by the time a train comes by.
The Union Pacific freight train heading to Louisiana was estimated to be going at 62 mph at the time of the crash.
The veterans had been invited to Midland, a transportation and commerce hub in the West Texas oilfields, for a three-day weekend of hunting and shopping in appreciation of their service. A local charity, Show of Support, had organized the trip, parade and other festivities. Show of Support officials have declined to identify the driver.
Killed were Marine Chief Warrant Officer 3 Gary Stouffer, 37; Army Sgt. Maj. Lawrence Boivin, 47; Army Sgt. Joshua Michael, 34; and Army Sgt. Maj. William Lubbers, 43.
Hayden began his military career as an active-duty soldier from 1980 to 1988. He did two stints in the Oklahoma National Guard in the 1990s before signing up again for the Army Reserve in December 2003, according to Army records. He served in Iraq until March 2005 and was deployed to Afghanistan in 2009 until the following September.
Four veterans were killed in the resulting collision in Midland on Thursday. Sixteen people were injured.
Dale Andrew Hayden was driving one of two flatbed trucks carrying wounded veterans and their loved ones in the procession to honor the war heroes, said Hal Brockett, Hayden's attorney.
"Words can't express the sorrow and remorse for the people who got hurt and killed," Brockett said in an interview Tuesday.
Investigators say the float began crossing the train tracks even though warning bells were sounding and the crossing lights were flashing. A Union Pacific train travelling at more than 60 mph ran into the truck as the occupants scrambled to jump to safety.
Hayden, who had a military career spanning more than three decades, now works as a truck driver for Smith Industries, an oilfield services company. Brockett said the company has placed Hayden on medical leave.
Hayden is "kind of catatonic" and not ready to be interviewed, Brockett said.
"He's just very much in shock," the lawyer said.
The San Antonio Express-News first identified Hayden as the driver.
Federal investigators on Tuesday plan to re-enact the events that led to the collision.
According to the National Transportation Safety Board, the railroad crossing warning system was activated 20 seconds before the accident, and the guardrail began to come down seven seconds after that.
But some Midland residents have said there isn't enough time between when the signal begins and the trains arrive. They say guardrails aren't completely down by the time a train comes by.
The Union Pacific freight train heading to Louisiana was estimated to be going at 62 mph at the time of the crash.
The veterans had been invited to Midland, a transportation and commerce hub in the West Texas oilfields, for a three-day weekend of hunting and shopping in appreciation of their service. A local charity, Show of Support, had organized the trip, parade and other festivities. Show of Support officials have declined to identify the driver.
Killed were Marine Chief Warrant Officer 3 Gary Stouffer, 37; Army Sgt. Maj. Lawrence Boivin, 47; Army Sgt. Joshua Michael, 34; and Army Sgt. Maj. William Lubbers, 43.
Hayden began his military career as an active-duty soldier from 1980 to 1988. He did two stints in the Oklahoma National Guard in the 1990s before signing up again for the Army Reserve in December 2003, according to Army records. He served in Iraq until March 2005 and was deployed to Afghanistan in 2009 until the following September.
Vet or not (total bs excuse), he screwed up. His actions killed humans. He should be held accountable. His negleglence led to death. Neglegent death. Sure hes "sorry". Every "human" who screws up should be. However this is why we have laws. As a nation of laws, we dont "pick and choose" who the tenants of law fall upon. Guilty. Jail and restitution.
Very sad no matter what the outcome is to who was/is to blame. I was almost rear-ended the other day because I stopped for a "extreme" yellow light. Terrible how these days yellow lights, train warnings, mean nothing to some. There might be a reason why such things are in place. If the train warnings are in motion - they are warning of something... he should have never been on those tracks plain and simple I feel
Even if the signal time is too short the bells were going off BEFORE he started to cross. Â The driver is 100% at fault.
This accident could have been prevented. I'm not sure if this is still the case or not but I read in another story that the truck was stuck behind another float and that's why he was stopped on the tracks. He had no where to go. The problem with this scenerio though is that I thought it was just common sense that drivers waited to cross railroad tracks until it is clear for them to do so instead of having to stop and wait on the tracks. If he was hung up because of other floats in his way, he should have stopped before the tracks and gave the other floats time to clear so he wouldn't have had to wait. What a tragic situation.
 @Tattooed_Angel If he has a CDL he knows better than to stop on a RR Track. Like you said, he should have waited 15 feet from the tracks. The Law.Â
Other than telling investigators WHY he ran the warning signals with a load of veterans on the trailer behind him he really doesn't have much to say. Why he isn't in jail is another question that needs answering. As for what bystanders are saying that there is too little time before the lights come on and the train arrives will probably bare out as false. Not only do they have lights and guardrails on that crossing the train must blow two long and a short and another long when approaching a crossing and a commercial driver must have his window open when approaching. What happened was stupid, uncalled for, and careless that cost some people their lives and others injuries that will be with them the rest of their lives.
Agreed - needs to be more information regarding if he was prevented from advancing further by another vehicle in front of him, etc...
 @Throbbinhood Or if he was misinformed that the trains were rerouted or delayed, given some sort of OK on the radio to proceed, etc.Â
And obviously it pales in comparison to this sad situation, but I do hope that a military veteran with "more than three decades" of service was working because he wants to, not out of financial necessity.Â
@MargeGunderson @Throbbinhood I'm thinking he was probably working more out of necessity. In the civilian world he probably would have been pretty well settled in after 30 years, but not so much in military life. When you move every three to four years during a military career it's a much different lifestyle than if you stay put in civilian life.
I am at a loss for words on how this could have happened. I pray for the families of the 4 Hero's who survived wars but yet died here at home. As for the driver, I honestly cannot judge him. I have no idea how or why this occurred and sadly I feel that we will be hearing about him committing suicide because he won't be able to live with what he did. I pray for ALL affected by this horrible tragedy.
 @Robinsnest The fault lies with the city engineers and the UP who set up the triggers for the crossing signals. Twenty seconds is not enough time, and the barriers were not fully down by the time the train arrived at the crossing.
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That in itself is a major failing. All mainline crossing signals need to be configured to assume that a train is approaching at 60 MPH.
 @NKato  @Robinsnest This is going to sound harsh, but the fault lies solely with the driver of the flatbed.  We learned pretty early on in driver's ed to NEVER stop your car on railroad tracks.  You never know when a system will fail, etc. so don't even take the chance.