San Francisco Woman Tethered To Dog On Train Dragged To Death After Hopping Out

KEY POINTS

The dog escaped the incident without any injury
The dog was tethered to the woman's waist
The victim appeared to wave at someone right before she was dragged under

A 41-year-old woman was dragged to death Monday at a San Francisco train station when the dog she was tethered to remained on the train, while she exited as the doors closed.

The tragic incident occurred around 3.16 p.m. at the Powell Street station platform. The woman, identified as Amy Adams, was standing on a platform with her dog tethered to her waist. According to the transit agency, the victim and her dog boarded a train headed for Dublin/Pleasanton, reported KNTV.

But, at the last moment, "right as the doors were closing," the woman hopped back onto the platform, while the dog remained on the train, Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) said in a statement.

The woman appeared to be waving at someone before she was dragged. As the train left the station, Adams was dragged onto the tracks, ultimately leading to her death, said BART in the statement.

"It was pretty traumatic," Mike Sim, who witnessed the incident, told KGO-TV. "Everybody was in shock."

Sim told the outlet he informed a BART attendant of the incident as soon as it happened. "You need to stop the Dublin train that just left Powell Street cause there's somebody stuck on the door and then she goes OK, OK, you know, we'll contact them."

Sim also claimed he spoke to a distraught man on the platform, who allegedly said, "My girlfriend, my girlfriend."

"This is a tragic loss of life, and we are following all safety protocols," BART spokesperson Alicia Trost said in the statement. According to BART officials, the dog did not sustain any injury.

The train operator has been placed on administrative leave and will have to undergo a drug test, which is the standard protocol with accidents, said BART officials.

BART police have talked to witnesses and reviewed surveillance footage that captured the accident.
The transit agency and National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) aided by BART’s Chief Safety Officer is also investigating the incident.

"The preliminary report is going to lay out the facts and the circumstances of the accident it will not be analytical it won't point to a cause or factor," said NTSB spokesperson, Peter Knudson, to KGO-TV.

The preliminary report from NTSB can take 30 days to complete.