Update Sept. 13: The two men who were struck and killed by an Amtrak train in West Berkeley Thursday night had been living in nearby homeless encampments and had been evicted from their tents this week, according to Andrea Henson, an advocate who has been working with them.
One of the men, with a nickname of Jupiter, had been living by the Seabreeze Market and Deli at 598 University Ave., she said. Caltrans cleared out an encampment there on Thursday.
The other man, known as Fixie, had been living at the “Downstairs” encampment by the University Avenue overpass, she said. Caltrans had cleared that encampment Wednesday.
Barbara Brust, another longtime advocate for those without permanent shelter, said that it had been very hot on Thursday and the people evicted from their tents this week had no shelter and no access to water. They were also under tremendous stress, which may have contributed to their decision to cross the train tracks when they did, she said.
“I can’t imagine you would have two people crossing the tracks in their best of minds making that mistake,” said Brust. “They were not at their peak performance.”