May 1: Woman killed by Green Line light-rail train was Minnesota Senate employee

The woman hit and killed by a Green Line train as she crossed University Avenue Thursday morning in St. Paul's Midway area has been identified as Lynne Thomas, an employee of the Legislature.

Senate Majority Leader Tom Bakk, DFL-Cook, said Thomas was a 28-year employee of the Senate and worked as a legislative assistant in the Senate office of Counsel, Research and Fiscal Analysis.

"I have to announce that the Senate lost one of our own this morning," Bakk said, his voice trembling while making remarks on the Senate floor. Senators observed a moment of silence, and several lawmakers fought back tears as they resumed a floor debate.

Gov. Mark Dayton also expressed sadness over the "sudden and tragic loss."

Officials said Thomas was crossing University at Snelling when she was hit by a westbound train about 7:30 a.m.

Scanner reports indicated Thomas stepped in front of the train. She was on the northeast corner of the intersection and walking south when she was hit, said Metro Transit spokesman Howie Padilla.

Paramedics found Thomas unconscious when they arrived and administered CPR. She was then taken to Regions Hospital with severe trauma and pronounced dead around 11 a.m., Padilla said.

Traffic at University and Snelling was blocked by the train for about 45 minutes, but the intersection reopened to traffic about 9 a.m.

Authorities are still investigating the accident.

This was the second fatality involving a pedestrian on the Green Line, which opened in June and runs between downtown Minneapolis and St. Paul. In August, Shana G. Buchanan, 42, an attorney, was struck and killed near the Westgate station near the border between Minneapolis and St. Paul.

Tim Harlow • 612-673-7768

Staff writer Patrick Condon contributed to this report