LIGHTS ALERT POLICE TO BLOCKED CROSSINGS

SCOTT CITY -- Indicator lights will be installed at the Scott City Police Department, allowing police dispatchers to know when rail crossings in the town are blocked.

The lights are designed to keep police, fire and emergency crews from being delayed when answering a call.

"It's been a major problem," said police Sergeant Jim Oldham. "Emergency vehicles are dispatched to the south or south central end of town and when they discover that the tracks are blocked they have to turn around and come back."

Oldham said the town's three railroad crossings at Oak, Rose Con and Daughtery Streets are usually blocked at the same time. The police, fire and ambulance stations are located on the northeast end of town.

He said trains occasionally block the crossings for 30 to 45 minutes, despite the fact that a city ordinance prohibits a train to be stopped on the tracks for longer than five minutes.

Oldham said when the tracks are blocked, emergency crews must drive to the Second Street overpass to get to the other side of town, usually adding five to seven minutes to the response time.

The three indicator lights one for each crossing will show dispatchers when and which crossings are blocked, and they can in turn advise crews of the fastest route.

"It's going to mean a big difference in the response time," Oldham said, "And in an emergency, the first few minutes are the deciding factor."

The sergeant said the lights will be installed in the coming weeks. The cost will be about $100 per light, he said.