Tragedy Strikes On Set Of Gregg Allman Biopic

There’s sad news from Wayne County, GA; where yesterday a crew member was killed and seven more crew members were injured during the filming of Midnight Rider: The Gregg Allman Story. The female crew member, a second camera assistant, was killed after she was hit by a freight train which unexpectedly crossed the tracks where yesterday’s filming took place.

Variety.com reports “the movie crew was filming a dream sequence on a railroad trestle when a train unexpectedly crossed the bridge. The crew, including director Randall Miller, had placed a bed on the tracks for the scene and was expecting two trains on the local bridge, one in each direction, when a third train arrived unexpectedly. A whistle warned the crew members of the next train, giving them less than a minute, which was too late.”

The freight train operator, CSX, issued a statement about the accident, “CSX is deeply saddened by a tragedy that occurred late today on a CSX rail bridge in Doctortown, Ga., and is cooperating fully with authorities as they investigate. A train was en route from Memphis to Savannah when the incident occurred.”

“All of us on the production team are devastated by the tragic accident that happened today. Our thoughts and prayers are with the family of our crew member,” Midnight Rider Productions said in a statement as per Variety.com. The film’s producers still intend to continue to film and release the movie according to Deadline.com.

The film is based on Gregg Allman’s 2013 autobiography My Cross To Bear and will star Tyson Ritter, William Hurt, Wyatt Russell, Zoey Deutch, Chad Lindberg and Charles S. Dutton.

UPDATE 2/21 11:30 a.m. PT: The Associated Press reports that the film crew did not have permission to film on the tracks. Wayne County Sheriff’s detective Joe Gardner told the AP that the film’s producers had permission to film on property next to the tracks but not on the tracks themselves.

UPDATE 2/22 11:30 a.m. PT: Gregg Allman has issued a statement about the situation via Facebook: “I am so terribly saddened by the news of the tragedy that took the young life of Sarah Elizabeth Jones on the film set. My thoughts and prayers go out to her family, friends and colleagues during this time of mourning.” -Gregg Allman