Business administration senior Thomas Stone was hit and killed by an Amtrak train on Tuesday near the intersection of California Boulevard and Foothill Boulevard.
San Luis Obispo Police Department (SLOPD)Lieutenant John Bledsoe said paramedics pronounced the 22-year-old man deceased at an unnamed hospital. Stone’s death appeared to be an accident, Bledsoe said.
“We have nothing to indicate that there was any suspicious activity,” Bledsoe said.
Stone was hit by the train at around 5 p.m.
Construction management sophomore Connor Westover was passing by the tracks when Stone was hit. Westover called 911, grabbing some rags for blood and rushed to Stone’s side.
“I was there, trying to tell him it’s going to be all right. He was gasping a lot,” Westover said. “I wish I knew more, I wish I could do more … I never thought I would be in this situation.”
Westover said Stone appeared to have had headphones in when he was hit. A SLOPD press release said other witnesses reported seeing Stone looking at his cell phone, unresponsive to the train’s horn.
Business administration junior Matt Sauer was riding his bike on California Boulevard when he saw paramedics performing CPR on a bloody person.
“It’s just so sad,” Sauer said. “You never want to see something like that happen.”
The train departed from San Luis Obispo at 4:48 p.m. headed toward Seattle. Police stopped the Amtrak train on the corner of Foothill Boulevard and California Boulevard until approximately 6 p.m.