Car stuck on tracks kills fmr. teacher

LOCKINGTON, Ohio (WDTN) - If the Sidney School District was a book, 77-year old William Takacs would be the glue that helps bind it together.

"He bled black and gold, Sidney's colors," says Sidney Superintendent John Scheu.

Takacs was a teacher for more than 36 years. He was also an assistant football coach on Sidney's famed 30-0 teams that its field is now named after.

But his love for Sidney really showed after he retired in 1996 but would still come back to take tickets at football and basketball games.

"He had the respect of anybody he came into contact with," Scheu says. "Just a well liked individual."

But Takacs story came to a sad end Thursday around 8:30 p.m. when his car got stuck at a railroad crossing on River Road northeast of Lockington.

In a dramatic call for help, you can hear a train approaching as a 911 operator urges Takacs to get out of his car.

"Our best speculation maybe the car was down and he couldn't get the door open or maybe a seatbelt was on," says Shelby County Sheriff John Lenhart.

The Sheriff says we may never know why Takacs couldn't escape, but what is widely known is the danger of the crossing where he was killed.

"The nickname of the crossing is dead man's crossing," Lenhart says.

2 NEWS took a closer look at what makes the crossing so deadly.

The sheriff says he's seen about a dozen serious crashes there.

Signals were added years ago but the danger remains because River Road curves sharply before going over the tracks.

"If you get off a little bit one way or another as you're crossing your wheels drop off the pavement in between the tracks," Lenhart says.

As for Takacs, his chapter in Sidney's history may be done, but his name lives on through his many accomplishments and his daughter who is a teacher in the district.

"He will be remembered by many, many people in Sidney," Scheu says.