A man who was among amateur ghost hunters standing on a North Carolina trestle early Friday waiting for a "ghost train" was killed by a real train that apparently surprised the group, authorities say.

The group had gathered on the 119th anniversary of the Bostian Bridge train wreck — an accident that sparked one of the Carolinas' best-known ghost stories.

Christopher Kaiser, 29, was killed when he was struck about 3 a.m. by a Norfolk Southern train, Iredell County Sheriff Phil Redmond said.

A woman who was with the group was seriously injured and airlifted to Carolinas Medical Center after being treated initially at a Statesville hospital. Several reports indicate Kaiser pushed the woman out of the way before he was hit by the train.

The incident happened on a trestle near the site of the old Bostian Bridge, off Buffalo Shoals Road, about 2 miles west of Statesville. They apparently did not hear the eastbound train coming until too late.

"There were reported to be around 12 amateur ghost hunters caught on the trestle when the train rounded the bend," Redmond said.

The sheriff said the group began running to the eastern end of the trestle, and all but Kaiser made it. Deputies found Kaiser’s body under the trestle, at the bottom of a steep ravine.

Redmond said investigators talked to some members of the group and will continue the investigation.

Read more of this story at CharlotteObserver.com