WALNUT CREEK (LA Times) — Two candlelight vigils will be held Sunday night to honor the two workers killed Saturday by a Bay Area Rapid Transit train.
The vigils for the workers will be at 6 p.m. at the Walnut Creek BART station and Lake Merritt Plaza in Oakland, according to Amalgamated Transit Union Local 1555.
The BART employee and contract worker, whose names have not been disclosed, were investigating a possible dip in the track when they were struck and killed Saturday afternoon between the Walnut Creek and Pleasant Hill stations. One was acting as a lookout while the other inspected the track, officials said.
National Transportation Safety Board officials were on site Sunday to conduct an investigation.
Transit employees went on strike Friday after a week of marathon negotiations broke down over work rules, including the length of the workday and when overtime pay should kick in. BART, the nation’s fifth-largest transit system, carries about 400,000 round-trip passengers each workday.
SEIU Local 1021 and Amalgamated Transit Union Local 1555 put out a joint statement expressing their “deepest sympathies for the families of the individuals who died in this tragic accident.”
ATU officials said their 900 workers would not be picketing Sunday out of respect for the victims and their families. Picketing will resume Monday, according to the union’s Twitter account.
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