Concord Police Confirm Death on Railroad Tracks

The Concord Police Department is investigating the death of a person on the railroad tracks behind Storrs Street.

On the afternoon of July 5, police and others were seen outside of the former New Hampshire Liquor Store warehouse but it was unknown why they were in the area.

Watch Commander Lt. John Thomas confirmed that a deceased person was found on the tracks but added that the case was “an active investigation” and he would not be releasing any other details at this time.

Rumors began circulating around 3 p.m. that a person had either passed out or fallen asleep on the tracks and was killed. Others speculated that the person could have been injured by the military convoy of trains that has been moving equipment out of the area for reported National Guard training in Michigan.

The police have been making regular sweeps along the stretch of tracks frequented by some of the homeless population that runs from The Common Man Restaurant to the Kimball-Jenkins Estate and I-393 for nearly two years now. Men and women have been cited and arrested for camping, trespassing, and drinking in public.

If the person killed was part of Concord’s expanding homeless community, it would be the fifth such death in the last two years.

Timothy Gee drowned in the Merrimack River in August 2012, while swimming with friends at Kiwanis Riverfront Park. 

Robert Richard was reported missing about 18 months ago and later, was found in the Merrimack River.

Mark Lufkin was reportedly assaulted last spring at one of the camps and later died although there are mixed versions of what exactly happened to him in the hours before he passed away.

Paul Tinkham was assaulted last summer in a camp underneath I-393. He reportedly ID’d the man who smashed a rock into his head before dying.

The American Friends Services Committee and other activist groups hold an annual vigil, part of a national movement in December, to honor members of the homeless community who have passed away. 

Concord NH Patch will follow up this post when more information becomes available.