Police said the woman had not been publicly identified as investigators reviewed what happened near Market Avenue and Wealthy Street.
GRAND RAPIDS, MI — A woman was killed Monday morning after she was struck by a train near Market Avenue SW and Wealthy Street SW, Grand Rapids police said, leaving investigators to determine what led to the fatal collision.
The crash drew police and fire crews to a rail corridor just south of downtown, near a busy mix of roads, businesses and industrial property. The Grand Rapids Police Department said the collision happened shortly before 11:10 a.m. May 25. Detectives had not released the woman’s name by Tuesday, May 26, and police said no one else was involved.
WOOD-TV reported that a man who witnessed the incident walked a News 8 crew through what he saw near the tracks. Police and other first responders remained in the area after the collision, and a news crew at the scene reported seeing a body covered near the tracks. The area is close to Wealthy Street, Market Avenue and the Grand River corridor, where trains move through a part of the city that also carries local vehicle and pedestrian traffic. Police did not say whether the woman was crossing the tracks, walking near them or already on railroad property when she was hit.
The Grand Rapids Police Department said detectives were still investigating the circumstances. Officials did not immediately release the train operator, railroad company, train direction or speed. Police also did not say whether warning devices were active at the time, whether the train crew sounded a horn, or whether surveillance video from nearby roads or businesses had been collected. “No one else was involved in the situation,” police said in an initial account of the case. That statement left the death under investigation but did not point to another person, vehicle or reported criminal act.
The collision happened in an area where the rail line cuts through the south edge of downtown Grand Rapids. Market Avenue SW runs along the Grand River and connects industrial sites, offices and entertainment areas. Wealthy Street is one of the city’s major east-west routes. The crossing area sits near places where road traffic, rail traffic and people moving through the city can come close together. Federal railroad safety officials have long identified pedestrian incidents on or near railroad property as a major source of rail deaths nationwide. Rail safety groups also note that trains cannot stop quickly, even when an engineer sees a person on the tracks.
Police did not announce charges or enforcement action Monday. The case appeared to be in the fact-gathering stage, with detectives working to identify the woman, notify relatives and reconstruct the moments before impact. Investigators were expected to review witness accounts, train crew statements and any available camera footage. The Kent County Medical Examiner’s Office would typically be involved in confirming cause and manner of death, though officials had not released any findings by Tuesday. No public briefing or hearing had been announced.
The death brought a visible emergency response to a section of the city where trains remain part of daily movement. Firefighters responded to the scene along with police, according to public posts from Grand Rapids fire personnel. Local television crews also reported from the area after officers blocked access near the tracks. The witness account added one of the few public descriptions of the moment itself, but officials had not released a full timeline of the woman’s movements before she was struck. Her age, city of residence and reason for being near the tracks remained unknown.
As of Tuesday, police said the investigation was continuing and the woman’s identity had not been made public. The next major update is expected to come from Grand Rapids police or the medical examiner when investigators finish notifications and release additional findings.
Author note: Last updated May 26, 2026.