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You are here: Home / Fires/Accidents/Disasters / Omaha man injured in rail accident

Omaha man injured in rail accident

January 6, 2011 By Radio Iowa Contributor

An Omaha man was rushed to the hospital by helicopter early this morning after he was found pinned between a guard rail and a train car at the Mid-American Energy Power plant near Council Bluffs. Pottawattamie County Sheriff’s Department spokesman Sgt. Duane Richie identified the victim as 28-year old Michael McGillen, Junior, an employee of the Iowa Interstate Railroad.

Riche says the accident happened around 3 A.M., as the train, loaded with product for Southwest Iowa Renewable Energy (SIRE), was backing toward a gate. The gate, which was supposed to have been opened by a SIRE employee, was closed. The railcar collided with the gate, causing a guardrail on the last car to bend inward, pinning McGillen’s stomach between the guardrail and a tank on the railcar.

Personnel on the scene were unable to free him. Lewis Township Rescue finally freed the man using mechanical means. A helicopter arrived to transport McGillen to an Omaha trauma center, but was unable to land at the plant due to the steam being generated from the power facility, so a landing zone was established at the nearby Pottawattamie County Animal Shelter.

A report on McGillen’s condition is currently not available. The incident remains under investigation by officials with the Iowa Interstate Railroad.

By Ric Hanson, KJAN, Atlantic

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