Lt. Rodney Hardy is the investigating officer. The Police Department knows that the train struck Derek Eugene Overton while he was walking on the tracks about 2:40 a.m., but it knows little else.
Hardy said that he doesn't know if Overton, 31, failed to hear the train, if he stumbled and fell, if he was somehow trapped, or what exactly led to the accident. He said he has no theories as of yet.
"It's too early for me to form them," he said.
The accident occurred at the 500 block of North East Broad Street. The Amtrak passenger train that struck Overton had already slowed as it prepared to stop at the Southern Pines depot. After the train struck Overton, it came to a stop "as quickly as it could" Hardy said. The train stayed at the scene until about 5 a.m.
Overton may have been walking to his home on May Street.
"He did live in the area," Hardy said, "not far from (the accident site)."
Medical Examiner Max Muse pronounced Overton dead on the scene. Overton leaves behind his wife, Tracy, and two children.
Billie Williams, Overton's father-in-law, described him as a man who enjoyed gardening, collecting cameras and gazing at the stars through his telescope.
"He enjoyed gardening, and he was good at it," Williams said.
On the Monday before the accident, Overton saved some kittens whose mother had been killed by stray dogs. The kittens were so young they didn't even have their eyes open. Three of them are still living on formula that Overton purchased for them.
"He was a very tender-hearted person," he said.
Overton married Williams' daughter nearly six years ago. Overton worked for Williams at Southmoore Heating and Cooling for about five years.
"He was very hard-working, very conscientious," Williams said. "Everybody who worked with him thought the world of him."
Williams said that Overton was a loving husband and father.
"I loved him like a son," he said. "He was a good young man."
Tracy, Overton's widow, said that she owes thanks to her loved ones who have been helping her cope with this difficult time.
"If it wasn't for our friends and family," she said, "none of us would have got through this. ... A lot of people feel like they've lost quite a bit."
Of her husband, she said, "He loved his kids more than anyone in the world."
The Southern Pines police are preaching caution to anyone walking on the railroad tracks. Hardy stressed that though many people do it, it is trespassing and is dangerous because the gravel is loose and uneven.
"People do walk up and down the railroad tracks frequently," he said. "We urge people to use caution."
Matthew Moriarty may be reached at 693-2479 or at moriarty@thepilot.com.
