WESTFIELD – City police are working to identify a woman who was found deceased near railroad tracks on the north side of the city.
A caller notified police at 12:30 p.m. today that he had discovered what appeared to be the body of an elderly man near his workplace.
Officer Terry Manos and a city ambulance responded to the caller’s location and the man pointed out what was found to be the body of a woman who appeared to be in her seventies.
The body was found between a commercial building on Lockhouse Road and the railroad tracks that run behind it.
The man said that he had not approached the body closely in order to preserve evidence and told Manos that it is his practice to walk along the railroad tracks during his lunch hour.
The firefighter EMTs report that the woman was deceased and said that she had probably been dead for hours, if not days, and that the cool ambient temperatures make it difficult to determine when she died.
The firefighters noted that, although the body was found near the railroad tracks, the woman does not appear to have been struck by a train.
Manos reports that there was no obvious trauma to the woman’s body and it was not immediately apparent how she died.
He said that the woman was not dressed for a prolonged stay outside.
Det. Lt. David Ragazzini said that there is no report of a missing woman who fits the description of the woman found and said that the investigation into her identity is ongoing.
Anybody with information about a missing elderly woman should call police at 562 5411 or the Detective Bureau at 572-6400.
