Featured Image Credit: YouTube/ TomoNews US/ ABC
Topics: News, US News, Film and TV
Niamh Shackleton
Harrowing footage shows the moment a camera crew were force to run for their lives to avoid an oncoming train.
In 2014, the team behind the US drama Midnight Rider (which was never finished) were filming in Georgia at the time of the ordeal, when they had to flee the train tracks they'd been setting up props on.
In the horrifying video, the crew is seen scrambling to safety as an ongoing freight train can be heard quickly approaching them.
Advert
They tried to take the props and filming equipment with them - a hospital bed included - and, while it looks like some people safely made it off the tracks, one member of the crew was tragically killed.
At the end of the video you hear the train get even closer as it appears to hit something.
27-year-old camerawoman Sarah Jones was later named to have been the person to have died in the ordeal.
In addition to Jones losing her life, a number of crew members were injured in the terrifying incident.
It was alleged that crew did not have permission to film on the tracks, sparking a criminal investigation.
The harrowing footage was shown to a jury in 2015 a hearing in which Hillary Schwartz, the first assistant director on the movie, was found guilty of criminal trespass and involuntary manslaughter.
She went on to be sentenced to 10 years probation.
Elsewhere, director of the drama Randall Miller pleaded guilty to involuntary manslaughter regarding Jones' death, and went on to to serve a year in jail followed by an ongoing 10-year probation.
Jackie Johnson, the district attorney who led the prosecution in the Midnight Rider criminal case, previously labeled Jones' death as a 'preventable tragedy'.
"Had everything been done, had everyone been doing their job that day, and had there been communication, I think that this would not have happened in any industry, whether it is the railroad industry or even in my office," she went on.
"Somebody has got to be in charge, and somebody has got to make sure that everybody else is doing their job as they should."
Miller was released in 2016 and went on to appeal to have his sentence terminated early.
A judge denied his request, however, and ruled that he had to serve another two years probation.
The decision came after Miller broke his probation terms in 2019 by filming a movie called Higher Grounds.
At the time, a judge ruled that he wasn't to go back to prison, but admonished him not to direct any more movies, Variety reported.
Jones' family were awarded $11.2 million in its civil suit against CSX Transportation.
The 27-year-old's parents later set up a foundation, called Safety for Sarah, in honor of their daughter to raise awareness for safer movie sets.