The area around a railroad crossing on Hillsdale Road outside Poplarville and Lumberton has been the site of multiple accidents in recent years.

According to Pearl River County Chief Deputy Shane Tucker, there have been seven accidents at that location between September 2014 and October 2016.

Each accident involved only one vehicle, Tucker said, and all but one of those accidents resulted in non-life-threatening injuries without fatalities.

During Monday’s Pearl River County Board of Supervisors meeting, Vice President Hudson Holliday brought up the issue to County Engineer Les Dungan’s attention.

Hillsdale Road curves before approaching the crossing from either the east or west.

“That curve certainly is a problem,” Tucker said.

Visibility is limited in that area as vehicles and trucks pass through the largely un-developed land.

Tucker said the number of accidents that occur there is high in proportion to the amount of traffic in the area.

The rural nature of the crossing also makes responding to accidents more difficult, Tucker said.

According to the Federal Railroad Administration database, the last vehicle vs. train collision at that crossing occurred in April of 1998 when a truck failed to stop and struck a passenger train.

The report shows one railroad employee was injured in the accident.

The last time a fatal accident involving a train occurred at that crossing was when a motorcycle failed to stop in November of 1990, according to the FRA.

Dungan said he is investigating the crossing to determine whether placing additional signage can be funded by the state.

Sections of Hillsdale Road are covered by state aid funding, and there is currently a project in that area, Dungan said.

Hypothetically, Dungan said advanced warning signs such as rumble strips and lights could be added to the roadway to draw motorists’ attention to the fact that there is a railroad crossing ahead.

Tucker said a yellow flashing light could also help warn drivers.