POUGHKEEPSIE – In the wake of the recent electrocution of CIA college student Noah Black, who came in contact with a low hanging power line on the FDR Estate in Hyde Park, US Senator Charles Schumer called on the Amtrak Railroad to conduct an audit of all of its power lines in Dutchess County.
The senator stopped at the Poughkeepsie train station on Thursday to call for swift action by Amtrak to review its power line placement and ensure they do not endanger passersby in parklands.
“According to local police, there was no signage near the wire that ended Noah’s life,” he said. “That is unacceptable, whether it is off the beaten path or on it. There should be no confusion when it comes to utility wires that can deliver fatal shocks.”
Schumer said Amtrak has almost 50 miles of utility wires in Dutchess County, many of which run along parks and tourist sites like the FDR Estate. He said the FDR Estate, the Vanderbilt Mansion and Mills Mansion, as well as the Hudson Highland State Park and trials that are still in the works are staples of Dutchess County tourism.
He called on Amtrak to audit its utility lines and if it finds that they are too low, raise them and if that is not possible, install additional, easily discernible, signage.
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