By ROBIN SHANNON

L’Observateur

RESERVE – A pickup truck that was stopped too close to the tracks at a crossing in Reserve Friday afternoon was hit by an oncoming train, according to a release from the St. John Sheriff’s Office.

The driver of the truck, Jessie Castillo, 22, of Grulla, Texas, was not seriously injured in the accident and refused medical treatment, said Capt. Dane Clement, public information officer for the Sheriff’s Office.

The collision happened around 3:18 p.m. at a railroad crossing at Railroad Avenue and Northwest 15th Street in Reserve. A stop sign and the railroad crossing cross bucks are posted at the intersection, but there are no lights or warning gate.

Clement said Castillo told authorities that he had stopped at the crossing, but the front end of his truck, a 2009 Chevrolet Silverado, was too close to the tracks. The front end of the truck was struck by a train traveling east on the tracks. The train is owned by the Canadian National Railroad. The conductor was not injured in the collision.

Clement said Castillo was cited for failure to yield at an intersection.