Man struck, killed by SunRail in Sanford identified

Police say Richard Holley died in crash with commuter train

SANFORD, Fla. – A man struck and killed by a SunRail train last week in Sanford was identified Thursday by police.

Officials said Richard Holley, 55, of Orlando, died in the crash, which occurred last Thursday around 10:10 p.m. near West State Road 46.

According to police, the SunRail train was traveling northbound toward the Sanford terminal when it struck Holley, who was lying across the tracks. The train continued on to its final stop in DeBary, police said.

The driver told authorities he didn't know he hit someone

The next morning, around 5:05 a.m., an engineer operating the SunRail train observed a body lying in the middle of the tracks.  The engineer stopped the southbound train and reported the observation.

A traffic homicide investigation is currently being conducted by the Sanford Police Department.

The discovery forced officials to close the tracks for about two hours.

Ashley Rome said she was delayed for over an hour when she tried to ride the commuter train. 

"I had no concept of how delayed they were, so that was frustrating," said Rome.

SunRail is working on a deal with Lynx to make sure service continues for riders no matter what.


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