The family of a man struck and killed by a CTrain last week wanted to bring some clarity to what happened that day.
Last Wednesday, 48-year-old Sean Mackidd pulled over to help strangers after their vehicle stalled out in between the train tracks on Memorial Drive.
MacKidd’s sister, Krista Pardoe, said while they were estranged, he was a strong man who struggled most of his life.
“I wanted people to know who he was and why he did the things he did that day,” she said.
Mackidd tried to assist Beverly Smith by offering to move her car out of traffic. But her brother, Sterling Smith, who was in the passenger seat, felt it was too dangerous and refused.
“He wanted me to move and my back end would have been over the train tracks and my brother came and said: ‘No!'” Beverly recalled.
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The siblings say Mackidd got angry and sped off without realizing he was driving into the path of an oncoming CTrain.
“He was so upset, he got into his vehicle in such a huff, he wasn’t hearing the bells and whistles and got in and hit the gas and took off. He didn’t see the train,” Sterling said.
Pardoe said his intention was to help the stranded motorist but he was impulsive.
“Unfortunately, because of a brain injury in his late teens, he was left forever altered and not always thinking rationally,” Pardoe explained. “I honestly think he was confused and he didn’t understand what he was doing.”
“I can only imagine what those last moments were like for him.”
“He didn’t have much but would give whatever he had if it meant he could help someone else. On Wednesday morning, he did just that,” Pardoe said.
Mackidd’s family wanted to thank the first responders for trying to save his life, as well as expressing their empathy for the CTrain driver.
“My heart breaks for you. I know this is something nobody should experience. This will change your life, so please know we hold no ill feelings towards you,” she said.
Pardoe also apologized to the Smith siblings for being on the receiving end of a heated exchange.
“Please know this was not your fault,” she said. “We can only imagine how traumatizing this whole experience has been for you.”
Mackidd’s loved ones say he was living in his car and was trying to turn his life around, had dreams of building tiny homes for the unhoused and was working to try and make that a reality.
They say he was also making amends for his past mistakes, including a meeting with his mom.
“He said: ‘Life is so precious and I don’t know how much time I have left with you and I want to see you.’ He was supposed to be meeting her for coffee later that day,” Pardoe said.
“This tragedy has brought our once-broken family together again and I can only hope we can heal these wounds that have separated us for a very long time,” Pardoe said.
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