A woman was struck and killed by a speeding train in Hayward, California, when the dog she was walking dragged her onto the tracks and into the path of the oncoming train. The woman and her friend were attempting to cross the tracks ahead of an approaching train.
“The crossing guards were down. The gentleman was able to make it through,” said Alameda County Sheriff’s Department Sgt. J.D. Nelson. “She tried to stop, realizing she probably couldn’t make it, and the dog dragged itself and her into the train.”
The Amtrak train bound for San Jose was traveling about 70 miles per hour when it struck and instantly killed the woman and her dog. The woman, 31-year-old Vida Silver, was petite and unable to let go of her 110-pound pit bull because the leash was wrapped around her hand.
“Her dog was her baby,” said Silver’s cousin Tonya Neves. “Everywhere she went, the dog went.”