A 40-year-old Moore woman, on her way to her nursing job at a textile mill, died Monday when she drove into the path of a train at a Roebuck crossing.
Spartanburg County Coroner Jim Burnett said Janice Marie Zimmerman Brown, of 127 Jamestown Court, drove across the railroad tracks on Old Georgia Highway about 7 a.m. and was struck. The train, traveling 33 mph, struck Brown's car on the driver's side and pushed it about 20 feet and threw debris more than 50 feet from the impact site, Burnett said. Brown was driving away from the Roebuck community, and the southbound CSX Railway train struck her car on the driver's side. She was driving to work at Cone Mill-Carlisle Finishing Plant, where she had been employed as a plant nurse for about a year, according to her sister, Sondra Z. Black. Brown's husband arrived at the scene minutes after the crash and was visibly shaken as he was escorted away from the wreckage by firefighters and investigators. "She called me every day when she got to work," Michael Brown said of his wife. "This morning she didn't call me. I came down that road and they detoured me around. I decided to cut back and see what had happened, because I was so worried. I asked what kind of car it was and they said it was a blue Honda," he said, referring to his wife's car. "Then I asked them to see if she was wearing a nurse's uniform." Brown suffered massive head injuries and died at the scene. The couple have no children. "We enjoyed spending time together," Michael said. "We did have a perfect marriage. We were totally dedicated to each other." Burnett said train conductor E.M. Fisk, 59, of Hampton, and engineer E.L. Gaines, 45, of Augusta, Ga., were not at fault. "There was nothing they could do once she got out in front of them," Burnett said. The crossing does not have arms that block the intersection as trains approach, but it is equipped with bells and lights that appeared to be in working order. Burnett said investigators are still trying to determine whether Brown tried to beat the train across the intersection or if she simply didn't see the train and signals. Lines of sight from the road to the railroad tracks in the area are blocked by some electrical equipment, trees and weeds, although none of the obstacles were discussed as possible causes in the initial findings. Brown was a graduate of Union High School, where she met her husband, as well as Lander College and the Mary Black School of Nursing at the University of South Carolina at Spartanburg. Before joining Cone Mill-Carlisle Finishing Plant, Brown worked for 17 years at Mary Black Hospital, her husband said. Brown enjoyed participating in her Bible study group at Bethany Baptist Church in Fountain Inn, painting and being with her Yorkshire terrier, her sister said.
Janice Marie Zimmerman Brown, 40, died Aug. 4, 1997, from injuries received in an automobile-train accident. A native of Union, she was a daughter of James Lester and Avonelle Johnson Zimmerman of Buffalo. She was a member of Buffalo United Methodist Church and attended Bethany Baptist Church of Fountain Inn. She was a graduate of Union High School, class of 1974, and Lander College. She received her bachelor of science degree in nursing from Mary Black School of Nursing at the University of South Carolina at Spartanburg and was employed as plant nurse with Cone Mill, Carlisle Finishing Plant. Also surviving are her husband, Michael Lewis Brown; a sister, Sondra Z. Black of Union; and maternal grandmother, Connie Johnson of Buffalo.
Spartanburg County Coroner Jim Burnett said Janice Marie Zimmerman Brown, of 127 Jamestown Court, drove across the railroad tracks on Old Georgia Highway about 7 a.m. and was struck. The train, traveling 33 mph, struck Brown's car on the driver's side and pushed it about 20 feet and threw debris more than 50 feet from the impact site, Burnett said. Brown was driving away from the Roebuck community, and the southbound CSX Railway train struck her car on the driver's side. She was driving to work at Cone Mill-Carlisle Finishing Plant, where she had been employed as a plant nurse for about a year, according to her sister, Sondra Z. Black. Brown's husband arrived at the scene minutes after the crash and was visibly shaken as he was escorted away from the wreckage by firefighters and investigators. "She called me every day when she got to work," Michael Brown said of his wife. "This morning she didn't call me. I came down that road and they detoured me around. I decided to cut back and see what had happened, because I was so worried. I asked what kind of car it was and they said it was a blue Honda," he said, referring to his wife's car. "Then I asked them to see if she was wearing a nurse's uniform." Brown suffered massive head injuries and died at the scene. The couple have no children. "We enjoyed spending time together," Michael said. "We did have a perfect marriage. We were totally dedicated to each other." Burnett said train conductor E.M. Fisk, 59, of Hampton, and engineer E.L. Gaines, 45, of Augusta, Ga., were not at fault. "There was nothing they could do once she got out in front of them," Burnett said. The crossing does not have arms that block the intersection as trains approach, but it is equipped with bells and lights that appeared to be in working order. Burnett said investigators are still trying to determine whether Brown tried to beat the train across the intersection or if she simply didn't see the train and signals. Lines of sight from the road to the railroad tracks in the area are blocked by some electrical equipment, trees and weeds, although none of the obstacles were discussed as possible causes in the initial findings. Brown was a graduate of Union High School, where she met her husband, as well as Lander College and the Mary Black School of Nursing at the University of South Carolina at Spartanburg. Before joining Cone Mill-Carlisle Finishing Plant, Brown worked for 17 years at Mary Black Hospital, her husband said. Brown enjoyed participating in her Bible study group at Bethany Baptist Church in Fountain Inn, painting and being with her Yorkshire terrier, her sister said.
Janice Marie Zimmerman Brown, 40, died Aug. 4, 1997, from injuries received in an automobile-train accident. A native of Union, she was a daughter of James Lester and Avonelle Johnson Zimmerman of Buffalo. She was a member of Buffalo United Methodist Church and attended Bethany Baptist Church of Fountain Inn. She was a graduate of Union High School, class of 1974, and Lander College. She received her bachelor of science degree in nursing from Mary Black School of Nursing at the University of South Carolina at Spartanburg and was employed as plant nurse with Cone Mill, Carlisle Finishing Plant. Also surviving are her husband, Michael Lewis Brown; a sister, Sondra Z. Black of Union; and maternal grandmother, Connie Johnson of Buffalo.
A 40-year-old Moore woman, on her way to her nursing job at a textile mill, died Monday when she drove into the path of a train at a Roebuck crossing.
Spartanburg County Coroner Jim Burnett said Janice Marie Zimmerman Brown, of 127 Jamestown Court, drove across the railroad tracks on Old Georgia Highway about 7 a.m. and was struck. The train, traveling 33 mph, struck Brown's car on the driver's side and pushed it about 20 feet and threw debris more than 50 feet from the impact site, Burnett said. Brown was driving away from the Roebuck community, and the southbound CSX Railway train struck her car on the driver's side. She was driving to work at Cone Mill-Carlisle Finishing Plant, where she had been employed as a plant nurse for about a year, according to her sister, Sondra Z. Black. Brown's husband arrived at the scene minutes after the crash and was visibly shaken as he was escorted away from the wreckage by firefighters and investigators. "She called me every day when she got to work," Michael Brown said of his wife. "This morning she didn't call me. I came down that road and they detoured me around. I decided to cut back and see what had happened, because I was so worried. I asked what kind of car it was and they said it was a blue Honda," he said, referring to his wife's car. "Then I asked them to see if she was wearing a nurse's uniform." Brown suffered massive head injuries and died at the scene. The couple have no children. "We enjoyed spending time together," Michael said. "We did have a perfect marriage. We were totally dedicated to each other." Burnett said train conductor E.M. Fisk, 59, of Hampton, and engineer E.L. Gaines, 45, of Augusta, Ga., were not at fault. "There was nothing they could do once she got out in front of them," Burnett said. The crossing does not have arms that block the intersection as trains approach, but it is equipped with bells and lights that appeared to be in working order. Burnett said investigators are still trying to determine whether Brown tried to beat the train across the intersection or if she simply didn't see the train and signals. Lines of sight from the road to the railroad tracks in the area are blocked by some electrical equipment, trees and weeds, although none of the obstacles were discussed as possible causes in the initial findings. Brown was a graduate of Union High School, where she met her husband, as well as Lander College and the Mary Black School of Nursing at the University of South Carolina at Spartanburg. Before joining Cone Mill-Carlisle Finishing Plant, Brown worked for 17 years at Mary Black Hospital, her husband said. Brown enjoyed participating in her Bible study group at Bethany Baptist Church in Fountain Inn, painting and being with her Yorkshire terrier, her sister said.
Janice Marie Zimmerman Brown, 40, died Aug. 4, 1997, from injuries received in an automobile-train accident. A native of Union, she was a daughter of James Lester and Avonelle Johnson Zimmerman of Buffalo. She was a member of Buffalo United Methodist Church and attended Bethany Baptist Church of Fountain Inn. She was a graduate of Union High School, class of 1974, and Lander College. She received her bachelor of science degree in nursing from Mary Black School of Nursing at the University of South Carolina at Spartanburg and was employed as plant nurse with Cone Mill, Carlisle Finishing Plant. Also surviving are her husband, Michael Lewis Brown; a sister, Sondra Z. Black of Union; and maternal grandmother, Connie Johnson of Buffalo.
Spartanburg County Coroner Jim Burnett said Janice Marie Zimmerman Brown, of 127 Jamestown Court, drove across the railroad tracks on Old Georgia Highway about 7 a.m. and was struck. The train, traveling 33 mph, struck Brown's car on the driver's side and pushed it about 20 feet and threw debris more than 50 feet from the impact site, Burnett said. Brown was driving away from the Roebuck community, and the southbound CSX Railway train struck her car on the driver's side. She was driving to work at Cone Mill-Carlisle Finishing Plant, where she had been employed as a plant nurse for about a year, according to her sister, Sondra Z. Black. Brown's husband arrived at the scene minutes after the crash and was visibly shaken as he was escorted away from the wreckage by firefighters and investigators. "She called me every day when she got to work," Michael Brown said of his wife. "This morning she didn't call me. I came down that road and they detoured me around. I decided to cut back and see what had happened, because I was so worried. I asked what kind of car it was and they said it was a blue Honda," he said, referring to his wife's car. "Then I asked them to see if she was wearing a nurse's uniform." Brown suffered massive head injuries and died at the scene. The couple have no children. "We enjoyed spending time together," Michael said. "We did have a perfect marriage. We were totally dedicated to each other." Burnett said train conductor E.M. Fisk, 59, of Hampton, and engineer E.L. Gaines, 45, of Augusta, Ga., were not at fault. "There was nothing they could do once she got out in front of them," Burnett said. The crossing does not have arms that block the intersection as trains approach, but it is equipped with bells and lights that appeared to be in working order. Burnett said investigators are still trying to determine whether Brown tried to beat the train across the intersection or if she simply didn't see the train and signals. Lines of sight from the road to the railroad tracks in the area are blocked by some electrical equipment, trees and weeds, although none of the obstacles were discussed as possible causes in the initial findings. Brown was a graduate of Union High School, where she met her husband, as well as Lander College and the Mary Black School of Nursing at the University of South Carolina at Spartanburg. Before joining Cone Mill-Carlisle Finishing Plant, Brown worked for 17 years at Mary Black Hospital, her husband said. Brown enjoyed participating in her Bible study group at Bethany Baptist Church in Fountain Inn, painting and being with her Yorkshire terrier, her sister said.
Janice Marie Zimmerman Brown, 40, died Aug. 4, 1997, from injuries received in an automobile-train accident. A native of Union, she was a daughter of James Lester and Avonelle Johnson Zimmerman of Buffalo. She was a member of Buffalo United Methodist Church and attended Bethany Baptist Church of Fountain Inn. She was a graduate of Union High School, class of 1974, and Lander College. She received her bachelor of science degree in nursing from Mary Black School of Nursing at the University of South Carolina at Spartanburg and was employed as plant nurse with Cone Mill, Carlisle Finishing Plant. Also surviving are her husband, Michael Lewis Brown; a sister, Sondra Z. Black of Union; and maternal grandmother, Connie Johnson of Buffalo.
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