DEL MAR, Calif. (KGTV) — A pedestrian was hit and killed by a COASTER train near Torrey Pines State Beach late Sunday night, authorities said.
The fatality occurred at around 9:53 p.m. on the North County Transit District train tracks along the Del Mar bluffs, just north of the beach, according to the San Diego County Sheriff’s Department.
Sheriff’s officials confirmed the pedestrian was pronounced dead at the scene.
The sheriff's Transit Enforcement Unit is handling the investigation due to the incident happening on NCTD property. The county Medical Examiner's Office is working to determine the deceased person’s identity and why the person was on the tracks.
Sunday’s tragedy marks the 10th person to be killed by a train this year in San Diego County -- the most recent was a man killed in Carlsbad in early March.
To compare, The North County Transit District said there were only 12 fatalities due to train collision in 2023, for the year's total.
In February, there were two deaths in Vista, one in Encinitas, and one near Camp Pendleton.
In January, there were four fatalities -- a person was hit and killed in Carlsbad; one person died in Encinitas; and two people were killed on Jan. 11, one in the Middletown neighborhood and another in Sorrento Valley.
Puja Thomas-Patel, LOSSAN's Communication Manager said they've partnered wiith 'California Operation Life Saver', and identified that many people are dying by train collisionz because they're crossing tracks for beach access, or they might be un-housed, or suffer for mental health challenge.
So to try and mitigate these causes, they launched last August an enhanced safety initiative where passengers and pedestrians will see more rail safety advertisements, receive more notifications on their cellphones while using rail services, see more signage around high risk sections of the tracks, and see more volunteers helping the unhoused closed to the tracks.
For anyone who is experiencing crisis or sees a crisis near the railroad tracks, dial 988 for the crisis lifeline.
