The Three Cape Breton Boys on the Tracks (the deaths of Kenny Novak, David Burrows, and Terry Burt,

Nighttime

Curiouscast

True Crime, Documentary, Society & Culture, History

4.6 • 1.3K Ratings

🗓️ 8 July 2025

⏱️ 29 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

In this episode, we revisit the tragic and puzzling deaths of three Cape Breton teenagers, Kenny Novak (15), David Burrows (17), and Terry Burt (20), who were struck and killed by a freight train in the early morning hours of July 10, 1970, in the remote woods of Maine. Officially ruled an accident, the case was quickly closed by authorities who concluded the boys had chosen to sleep on the tracks. We are joined by Ken Jessome, a childhood friend of Kenny and David, who has spent the last several years reigniting interest in the case through a series of articles in his community newspaper. Ken shares his personal memories of the boys, reflects on the strange details surrounding their deaths, and explains why he believes the official story doesn’t add up. Links: Ken Jessome - [email protected] Remembering a Mysterious Summer of ’70 Tragedy (CapeBretonSpectator.com - Ken Jessome - July 19, 2017) Sleeping Victims: A Cape Breton True Crime Story? (GoCapeBreton.com - Ken Jessome - June 6, 2018) An Unfortunate Mishap: Three Cape Breton Deaths (GoCapeBreton.com - Ken Jessome - July 10, 2018) Subscribe to the show: https://www.nighttimepodcast.com/subscribe Musical Theme: Noir Toyko by Monty Datta Contact: Website: https://www.nighttimepodcast.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NightTimePod Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nighttimepod Support the show: https://www.patreon.com/nighttimepodcast Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	Hello, listeners. Before we start, I just want to remind you, you can listen to nighttime
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0:43.1	This episode of Nighttime was originally released in May of 2019.
0:48.4	However, it is now being remastered and re-released in July 2025 on the 55th anniversary of the events you'll soon hear described.
0:53.2	You are listening to the Nighttime Podcast.
0:58.4	It doesn't seem to matter where or when you are from.
1:02.2	Every generation seems to carry with it the weight of a tragedy that struck close to home
1:06.8	during its youth.
1:08.6	Perhaps it was a fatal car crash, a house fire, or a murder. From the outside,
1:13.6	these events make headlines for a few days, stir up a wave of grief, and then quietly fade into
1:19.3	the past. But if the lives lost are part of your world, if they sat beside you in class,
1:25.0	or if you shared laughs, it's completely different.
1:28.5	The memory doesn't fade.
1:30.3	The names, the faces, and the moment you learned what happened, that stays with you.
1:35.7	In this episode of nighttime, we're going to hear one of those stories.
1:39.1	Back in the summer of 1970, in the woods of Northern Maine, a freight train struck and killed three teenage
	...

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