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A distracted pedestrian was struck by a FrontRunner commuter train as it came to a stop at the Roy FrontRunner station Tuesday morning.
The man was in "extremely critical" condition as of Tuesday night, said Roy Police spokesman Bryce Weir.
Witnesses said the man was looking at something in his hand when he tried to cross the tracks on the north end of the station's platform about 7:48 a.m., said Utah Transit Authority spokesman Remi Barron. The train was sounding its horn, but the man appeared not to notice it, Weir said.
"It was the southbound train, and lucky for him it was slowing at the time," Barron said. "As he stepped in front of it, he looked up at the last second and jumped off the tracks, so it was an indirect impact."
The man, 36, suffered severe injuries and was taken to a hospital, where his condition was "touch and go" Tuesday night, Weir said. However, in the morning, he was conscious and communicative when taken to the hospital, where he was initially listed in serious condition.
Investigators found ear phones at the scene, but they do not know whether he was wearing them or whether that was the reason he did not notice the train.
The accident delayed FrontRunner passengers heading southbound by up to half an hour during the height of the morning commute.
It was the second accident involving a pedestrian and a UTA train in as many days.
Monday afternoon in Salt Lake City a woman was fatally struck by a TRAX light rail train north of the Ballpark station.
The woman was walking near the train tracks about 4:30 p.m. near 200 W. Paxton Ave. (1180 South), when she lost her balance and fell in front of a train, Barron said.
Less than an hour earlier, UTA police had spotted her walking in the right-of-way near the tracks; she appeared intoxicated, Barron said. The officers took her to a voluntary detox facility, but she left and returned to the tracks, Barron said.
Witness reports indicate the fall likely was an accident.
The woman's identity still was being withheld pending efforts to notify her family.
Twitter: @remims