22 June 2004 Train Kills Portage Man When William John Pitts was first told his 20-year-old son was fatally struck by a train on the weekend he refused to believe he'd never see him alive again. "It's Impossible"   Reality set in for the grieving dad on Sunday morning only after authorities handed over the wallet his son, John Paul Moose, had been carrying the day before while walking by train tracks near Portage la Prairie.   "I lost it. I just screamed. It's impossible. I wouldn't accept it," said Pitts, who worked alongside his son at a Mac's convenience store in their hometown. "I saw him at 6:30 a.m. He was getting gas from me. At 11 a.m. he was dead."   Moose had wondered off from his friends when he was hit by an eastbound Canadian Pacific train about five kilometres northwest of Portage la Prairie on Saturday morning, said RCMP.   Mountie spokesman Sgt. Steve Colwell said Moose laid down on the tracks.   They are calling his death accidental and not a suicide. Colwell said alcohol played a role.   About five hours before his death, Moose had stopped by the store to fill a jerry can of gas for some friends who had run out down the road.   He had been celebrating a friend's birthday the night before.   Rakhi Walia, whose husband owns the store, said Moose was encouraged to go home and sleep since he was scheduled to work at 2 p.m.   The conductor of the Winnipeg-bound train saw Moose lying on the tracks but couldn't stop in time, RCMP said.   "I don't know how to put it into words. He was just a happy-go-lucky guy," his father said. "He loved sports, video games."   On Saturday night, several songs were dedicated to Moose at a local bar, Pitts said. His son dreamt of one day opening his own sports bar.   The family doesn't understand how Moose wound up on the tracks. Foul play is not suspected, said RCMP.   "It's still a mystery," Pitts said.   Moose's former fiancee - he proposed to his high school sweetheart but they broke up seven months ago - said he loved to laugh and was the life of the party.   Lesley Ford said they were trying to work it out and get back together.   "He meant a lot to me," Ford said. "He was a great guy and everybody will miss him."   Pitts spends a lot of time at the store to stay busy and cope with the tragedy, Walia said.   "He doesn't want to go home. If he goes home, he remembers everything," she said.