A Burlington man was struck and killed by a train early this morning at a railroad crossing between Efland and Mebane, according to emergency medical services in Orange County.

The sheriff’s office identifed the man as 34-year-old Andrew Wayne Farrell III of 1010 Louis Street in Burlington in Alamance County.

Farrell was sitting on the tracks and did not move when the crew blew the horn, according to Robin Chapman, spokesman for Norfolk Southern railroad company, which operates the tracks.

The train was traveling east from Linwood in Davidson County to Raleigh when the crew spotted a person sitting on the tracks facing away from the oncoming train, said Chapman.

The accident occurred two-tenths of a mile west of the intersection of Redman Crossing Road and U.S. 70. The speed for trains on that part of the tracks is 60 mph, but Chapman was unsure the speed of the train at the time of impact. The train traveled for a mile and a half before it was able to come to a full stop after striking Farrell.

Norfolk Southern operates 20,000 miles of track throughout the eastern part of the country. Chapman said that he hears about a pedestrian fatality from a person trespassing onto tracks operated by the company at least two or three times a week.

In a situation like this, the conductor who was operating the train when it struck the person can either take time off from work or is given counseling, said Chapman.