GARYSBURG – In a bizarre accident, a train struck a man here early Friday morning.

Edward Crowell, 46, of 100 Buffalo Street in Garysburg, was apparently riding his bicycle on the Old Highway when he drove over the train crossway and was hit.

According to Detective Colson of the Northampton County Sheriff’s Office, the train conductor saw the bicyclist and thought Crowell was going to stop after he blew the train’s horn, but Crowell kept coming and the train was unable to stop.

&uot;He had tried to go across the railroad tracks in front of the train. Evidently his perception of the train was not where it should be,&uot; Colson stated.

The crossway is marked with blinking lights, which were activated at the time Crowell was struck.

The accident occurred at approximately 12:44 a.m. Crowell was transported via ambulance to Halifax Regional Medical Center in Roanoke Rapids and then airlifted to Pitt Memorial Hospital in Greenville.

According to Colson, he sustained fractured ribs, bruising of lobes on the front of his brain and a cracked neck. Despite being on a ventilator, he is listed in stable condition in the SICU at Pitt.