From the Lawrence Daily Journal-World for May 11, 1989:

A Haskell Indian Junior College student had been killed and two other students seriously injured early today when a train had struck their car as they were heading to Riverfront Park for an end-of-school-year celebration. The train’s engineer said the car’s driver had made no attempt to stop at the crossing. “He (the engineer) went into emergency, applying all the brakes, “said Alex Tice, Union Pacific’s regional director for public relations. “The momentum of 98 cars, even at relatively low speeds, takes a long time to stop.” Students at Haskell were described by Dean of Students Bennie Smith as “full of remorse” this morning, the last day of final exams. “These were very well-thought-of students,” Smith said. About 200 students and staff gathered the next day for a memorial service for Lester Battise, the student killed in the collision.