A Gilroy woman died Monday and a driver seriously injured during
the evening Caltrain commute after the driver of a white GMC Sonoma
truck tried to beat a train across the tracks in Morgan Hill.
The truck was struck by a Southbound Caltrain commuter train at
the intersection of Railroad and San Pedro Avenues Jan. 23 at 6:53
p.m. The passenger in the accident, Jacqueline Gamboa, 18, of
Gilroy, died at the scene after the train collided with the
vehicle. The driver, 20-year-old Nathan Schrock of Gilroy, received
serious injuries and was taken by Cal Star life flight to San Jose
Regional Medical Center.
A Gilroy woman died Monday and a driver seriously injured during the evening Caltrain commute after the driver of a white GMC Sonoma truck tried to beat a train across the tracks in Morgan Hill.
The truck was struck by a Southbound Caltrain commuter train at the intersection of Railroad and San Pedro Avenues Jan. 23 at 6:53 p.m. The passenger in the accident, Jacqueline Gamboa, 18, of Gilroy, died at the scene after the train collided with the vehicle. The driver, 20-year-old Nathan Schrock of Gilroy, received serious injuries and was taken by Cal Star life flight to San Jose Regional Medical Center.
Schrock remained in the hospital in fair condition, according to a spokesperson for the medical center, as of press time.
“No one on the train was injured,” said Jonah Weinberg, a spokesperson for Caltrain/Samtrans. “We had them off the train 30 to 40 minutes after the collision. We had buses to get them to their final destination.”
Commuters were allowed to exit the train after Morgan Hill police completed its initial crime scene investigation.
“We try to get people out as soon as possible, but we have to wait to be cleared by the police,” Weinberg said.
The last collision of a Caltrain with an occupied vehicle occurred in 2004, when a driver crossed the lowered railroad gates.
“The local police department investigates because crossing the train tracks [when the guard is lowered] is a trespassing violation,” Weinberg said.
A preliminary investigation by the Morgan Hill Police Department found that Schrock stopped behind another vehicle at the intersection, but became impatient. He drove past the vehicle and through the closed railroad crossing arms and was stuck by the train. The Amtrak Police Department, the San Mateo County Sheriff’s Office and the Union Pacific Railroad Police Department responded to the accident and will be conducting investigations.
