Saddleback student killed on train tracks in Mission Viejo
Anastasia Bolton (courtesy of OCSD)
Two people were killed and one injured in a commuter train collision in Mission Viejo Thursday, September 9th. One of the dead was identified by the Orange County Sheriff’s Department as Anastasia Bolton, a 17-year old who had attended Mission Viejo High School and was studying dance at Saddleback College. Investigators also identified the other fatally struck victim as Daniel Atkins, 22, of Mission Viejo. Another woman, Silvia Lua, 27, of Santa Ana sustained moderate injuries, as she was able to roll off of the tracks in time. The trio had been sleeping on rocks adjacent to the train tracks, said Sheriff’s Department spokesman Jim Amormino. “[Lua] said she heard the train coming and jumped out of the way and it nicked her arm and leg,” Amormino said. “It’s possible they were sleeping on the tracks but there was no evidence they were drinking at the scene.” After she was struck, Lua dialed 911 and awaited the arrival of emergency services. The trio had met the previous week through the social networking site Facebook, Lua told officers. They had decided to meet Wednesday and after spending the evening walking around Laguna Beach they returned to Mission Viejo. The group parked in a strip mall’s parking lot and fell asleep around 4 or 4:30 am, said Amormino. Lua told officers that a short while later Bolton left the car and started down a nearby gully where the train tracks ran. After sitting on the train tracks for some time, the three fell asleep next to the tracks. “Because she fell asleep first, she doesn’t know what the other two did,” Amormino said. “Possibly they fell asleep on the tracks. Anything’s possible. Sometimes young people do foolish things. What they were doing, we may never know.” Between 5 and 6 a.m., Lua was woken by the sound of the Metrolink 603 train approaching and managed to roll out of the way. The commuter train, carrying 67 passengers and traveling at 90 mph, was brought to a halt half a mile past the point of impact. No passengers were hurt.