NTSB: Drugs, Phone Use May Have Caused 2015 Arkansas Rail Yard Death

The National Transportation Safety Board says it found several safety issues during its investigation of a 2015 rail yard death at a Pine Bluff packaging plant.

The agency says it found illicit drug use by employees, inappropriate use of cellphones and the apparent use of an unapproved switching procedure. The April 3, 2015, accident at Evergreen Packaging left a worker on the ground dead.

In a tweet Tuesday, the NTSB linked to a report that says it found evidence of opioid use by the victim and methamphetamine use by a train operator, but couldn’t tell if that contributed to the accident.

The agency also says the crew likely used a short cut to separate cars from a train without fully stopping, and that the victim apparently tripped.