2009

15 December 2009 Alberta Train-Hopper Nearly Freezes to Death   A 29-year-old man narrowly escaped freezing to death after illegally hitching a ride on a Wetaskiwin train.     Wetaskiwin Alberta - A 29-year-old man narrowly escaped freezing to death after illegally hitching a ride on a Wetaskiwin train, leading cops on a wild chase, police say.   Around 3:45 a.m. Friday, cops say the intoxicated Edmonton man decided to jump on a train that was slowly chugging through Wetaskiwin and catch a ride for a few blocks rather than walking.   But his plan was foiled when the train began to speed up and he realized he wouldn't be getting off any time soon.   Positioned dangerously between cars near the hitch, the man was exposed to -26 C temperatures, plus the wind chill, and quickly became hypothermic during the 70-km ride.   Luckily, cops said, he had his cellphone with him and managed to call both the RCMP and another person who also contacted police.   "Where his luck really started was that he had his cellphone, the battery didn't die as a result of the cold and he didn't drop it," said RCMP spokesman Sgt. Patrick Webb.   Cops launched into action, calling Canadian Pacific Railway and Canadian National Railway officials in an attempt to figure out which train he was on. Eventually, they narrowed it down to two possible freight trains.   One was stopped near Blackfalds and another was halted close to Ponoka while two different ambulance dispatches were put on standby.   Officers kept the man on the phone while the trains blew their whistles they determined by the noise that he was on the Blackfalds train.   "It was a very astute thing to do," Webb said of the quick-thinking rescue team's actions.   Officers from both the Red Deer and Lacombe detachments trudged through snowdrifts 40 train cars back where they finally found the man, nearly unconscious.   Cops say they had to get the train to move up to a waiting ambulance because the victim was too weak to move through the deep snow.   When paramedics were finally able to treat him, they discovered his core temperature had plummeted to a dangerous 32 C.   At that stage of hypothermia organs begin to shut down and cell damage starts to occur, police say.   The body isn't even able to shiver any longer and muscle co-ordination is impaired.   Webb said the large crew of paramedics, police, and train officials likely saved the man's life.   "(It took a lot of) dedication and resources to find him," he said. "There were a lot of people (involved) to correct that foolish mistake."   The man was taken to hospital after the ordeal and he's expected to make a full recovery, police say.   "The last word I got is he didn't lose anything to frostbite and he's recovering just fine," Webb said.   Canadian Pacific Railway police have charged the man, whose name they aren't releasing, with one count of trespassing.   He's scheduled to appear in court sometime in February, said Mike Lovecchio, spokesman for CP railway.

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