Emerson professor dies after being struck by commuter rail train in Beverly

BEVERLY, Mass. — The man hit by a train while crossing tracks on his bicycle in Beverly has been identified as a beloved college professor.

Officials say 42-year-old Moses Shumow was struck by an outbound train on Track 1 while riding his bike through the pedestrian cut through. He sustained serious injuries and was transported to a hospital for treatment.

The incident happened at approximately 8:20 a.m., when transit police officers received a radio call to respond to the Beverly Depot Commuter Rail station.

Beverly Fire, EMS and multiple transit police units responded to the scene.

While Shumow was rushed to a nearby hospital, he died shortly after the crash.

Shumow, an associate professor at Emerson College, was a 2001 graduate of the school's broadcast journalism program.

Shumow had just moved to the Boston area with his wife and kids to teach at Emerson College this fall, returning to the school where he earned his master's degree in 2011.

While he had only taught at the school for about a month a half, students and faculty said Shumow had already made a powerful impact.

"If there was a challenge, Moses was not the person who would say, 'Oh I can’t,'" said Janet Kolodzy, the Chair of the Emerson College's Journalism Department. "No, Moses was like, 'Lets figure it out, let’s go forward.'"

Emerson officials say Shumow was an accomplished journalist, producing documentaries for major networks like PBS, National Geographic and the History Channel.

"He was looking forward to his life here in the Boston area for his family," said Kolodzy.

Kolodzy says she first met Shumow nearly two decades ago when he was earning his master’s degree from the school. She says she was thrilled for his return as a journalism professor after spending nine years of teaching at Florida International University in Miami.

"His whole focus has been to bring together stories from communities that often don’t get covered and help students how to cover those communities," said Kolodzy.

"Moses was not an advisor, he was our friend and I lost my friend," said Angel Salcedo, a student.

Salcedo is a junior at Emerson and a news director at the college's TV station, WEBN. He says Shumow hit the ground running with enthusiasm and passion and had big plans ahead for the student broadcast.

"I had just spoken to him on Friday, today was the day he was going to meet all the of students at WEBN," said Salcedo. "It’s tough for me to pick myself up and say, 'Hey guys, we’re going to be alright' because I don’t know that."

As transit police continue to investigate the circumstances of Shumow's death, grief counselors will be available for students and staff at Emerson.

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