Dear editor,

I am greatly concerned that people are blaming the 16-year-old driver of the SUV that collided with the train at Shelby County Rd 377 on Monday simply because of age.

I think it would be very valuable for investigators and residents to understand that the train whistle does not typically blow until the train sees the crossing which is not enough warning for any driver. I am 42 years old and extremely cautious at train crossings, in particular, those without lights or barriers.

I was recently at that crossing and stopped, looked, and listened. As I was in the middle of the tracks, a train came around the corner towards Birmingham (this has more visibility) and blew it&8217;s whistle. I finished crossing the bumpy tracks as quickly as I could and cleared with only fifteen feet before the train crossed over where I was.

My 16-year-old son was with me and we both agreed that this crossing is extremely unsafe and the railroad does not provide enough warning since they are relying on the vehicle&8217;s driver to see a train around the corner and hear a whistle that has not blown until it&8217;s almost too late.

After relating this to my husband, he indicated that he has had similar experiences there with not being able to see the train until it&8217;s almost there.

Now, you may have noticed that in my case, the train was going towardsBirmingham, which is the side that has the longest amount of track prior to reaching the curve. The side of the track coming from Birmingham is less than half the length from its curve to the crossing; which from my understanding is the direction the train was going when Hannah Yeager was killed.

How could any driver, once they have started across the tracks with the assumption that since they haven&8217;t seen or heard a train, there must not be a train coming, and have enough time to get out of the way by the time the train&8217;s driver gives warning of the impending crossing?

Let&8217;s place some blame on the railroad for not keeping up with population growth and traffic patterns.

This crossing is used by a lot of residents and should have lights warning of the train around the corner.

Amazingly enough, until this happened, there were not traffic measuring devices right before the crossing. Now they are there; however, since some drivers are currently avoiding this crossing, this may not give an accurate prediction of the usual traffic flow on this road.

Barbara Glenn, Chelsea

Dear editor,

The SUV/Train accident that killed my daughter, Hannah Grace Yeager, was a horrible incident to say the least.

The facts about the accident are still under investigation. Speculation about what happened is just that, speculation.

I am the eight grade math teacher at Chelsea Middle School. I taught every student riding in that SUV and I love them all.

They are all good kids and they were all friends of my daughter.

Nothing will bring my Hannah back to me, and I am asking that your newspaper respect my family and the families of the other students by not posting comments that refer negatively of my child or the other children involved.

Julie Yeager, Sterret