Kent man, 44, reportedly lying on tracks when struck by train

Published 1:34 pm Wednesday, October 8, 2025

A 44-year-old Kent man was reportedly lying on the railroad tracks when a BNSF Railway train struck and killed him on Tuesday, Oct. 7 in Kent.

“It was reported that a male was seen lying on the tracks by train engineers, they sounded their horns while attempting to stop the train, but they were unable to stop the train and prevent striking the male,” according to an Oct. 8 email from Kent Police Assistant Chief Jarod Kasner.

The man was 44 years old and from Kent, Kasner said.

Officers responded at about 11:57 a.m. to the tracks near First Avenue South and East Willis Street.

The freight train was about 5,012 feet long with two locomotives and 69 cars, Kasner said.

The King County Medical Examiner’s Office has not yet identified the man.