Family sues Metra after snowplow operator killed by freight train in Naperville

The family of a man who died after being hit by a freight train while clearing snow at a Naperville stop last year is suing Metra, claiming the rail system was negligent.

The eastbound train struck the snowplow that contractor Henrrich Alvarez-De La Sancha was driving Dec. 1 outside the city’s downtown station on Metra’s BNSF Line.

Metra officials did not have any comment Monday.

The lawsuit, filed in Cook County court July 10, alleges Metra “provided insufficient roadway worker protection and did not provide sufficient warning of the freight train.”

It also contends the railroad improperly outsourced snow removal duties to other authorities.

Alvarez-De La Sancha lived in Kane County and supported a wife and two children with his wages. The family has suffered substantial losses and “severe mental pain and anguish,” following his death, according to the lawsuit that seeks more than $50,000 in damages.

Naperville officials said Alvarez-De La Sancha was working for the city as a subcontractor. He was operating a plow on the south platform at the downtown station when the crash occurred.

“Our employees and contractors deliver vital services to the community daily, and their safety is of paramount importance to us,” City Manager Doug Krieger said in a statement. “The loss of life in this manner is heartbreaking.”

The city owns the station building and BNSF Railroad owns the tracks, but the lawsuit argues that Metra “has a nondelegable duty to control safety on the adjacent tracks and subject platforms,” and provide training.

Metra “owed a duty to maintain the tracks, right of way, and the Naperville station in accordance with state and federal rules, orders, and regulations,” attorneys stated.