TV news reporter nearly hit by car while covering Bay Area train derailment

A television news reporter covering a Bay Area train derailment was almost run over by a careening automobile Tuesday morning, but escaped injury when a camera operator shouted at him to get out of the way at the last second.

Alex Savidge was reporting live for KTVU-TV from a 7-Eleven parking lot in Fremont when a traffic collision launched a white sedan over the curb and directly at him.

Savidge never saw the car coming, however, as he was delivering his standup and his back was turned.

Fortunately, cameraman Chip Vaughan spotted the speeding vehicle and shouted “Alex, get out of the way,” according to Savidge.

“My heart hasn’t stopped racing,” Savidge later said in a video posted on Facebook. ‘I am doing OK.”

A rattled Savidge thanked Vaughan and gave him a hug after the episode.

Savidge and Vaughan had been covering the derailment of a commuter train that occurred about 7:15 p.m. Monday in Niles Canyon.

The Altamont Corridor Express, also known as the ACE train, was traveling north between Fremont and Pleasanton when it struck a tree that had fallen onto the tracks and derailed.

A mudslide triggered by days of rain likely pushed the tree onto the tracks, ACE officials said. There were 214 passenger aboard, and nine were injured.

“Our main priority is to ensure the safety of all ACE passengers,” ACE said in a statement. “Service will resume once the tracks have been cleared and the area has been inspected.”