GO train strikes truck, kills tow operator in Mississauga

Mississauga, Ontario — November 2, 2015 — A 54-year-old tow truck driver is dead after a GO train crashed into his truck in Mississauga late last week. CBC News reports Randy Muzzi was responding to a multi-vehicle collision at a rail crossing on Ninth Line north of Derry Road on October 30 at around 6:30 a.m. when the incident took place. To make room for firefighters, Muzzi had inadvertently backed his truck onto the tracks, and was struck by an advancing eastbound train while attempting to move the vehicle out of the way. “The tow truck was servicing the accident. I went back home and heard a loud bang and that’s when we found out the train pushed the truck all the way to the end of the track,” a witness told CP24. Police say the train dragged the truck for about 500 metres before coming to a stop near Lisgar station. Muzzi was pronounced dead at the scene. Muzzi held over three decades of experience working in the towing industry, most recently with Mississauga’s Atlantic Towing. He is survived by his wife, Wendy, and their 29-year-old son. “It’s pretty upsetting—it’s a tragic accident,” TLK Towing’s Todd Keely, Muzzi’s former employer and friend, told CP24. “He was a super guy—probably one of the hardest workers you’d ever meet. He was really diligent about putting his hours in and doing his job and he was always there for his customers and friends.” According to Metrolinx spokesperson Anne Marie Aikins, the train’s 172 passengers were evacuated at around 9:30 a.m. No one aboard the train was injured. In the hours following the fatal crash, all morning service on the Milton GO line was suspended. Peel police Major Collisions Bureau and the Transportation Safety Board and GO Transit officials continue to investigate.