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News Wire: Three dead in CP derailment in British Columbia

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Posted by Overmod on Tuesday, February 4, 2020 5:38 AM

NDG

 
CBC seems to think this is amaze-O new information.  Not sure it adds anything much to the original (Globe and Mail-sourced; interestingly no longer available) footage mentioned in the original Newswire post and commented on early in this thread -- the anomalous UP DPU mentioned there, too.
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Posted by Paul_D_North_Jr on Tuesday, February 4, 2020 8:38 PM

BaltACD
 
cx500
The grade in the area is roughly 2% downhill, and the train weight was something around 15,000 tons.  Only three units, only one of which was in the lead position.  I don't know but the emergency application may have superseded the independent setting.  And the DPUs would have to be reset after the emergency application.

Do the math: 
"This Fascinating Railroad Business" (title of 1943 book by Robert Selph Henry of the AAR)
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Posted by BaltACD on Tuesday, February 4, 2020 10:01 PM

Being that I retired from CSX and their AC 'heavy' locomotives are shown as weighing in at 432K - that I why I stated 700 tons for the 3 locomotives.

Never too old to have a happy childhood!

              

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Posted by SD70Dude on Friday, February 7, 2020 3:48 PM

Overmod
NDG
CBC seems to think this is amaze-O new information.  Not sure it adds anything much to the original (Globe and Mail-sourced; interestingly no longer available) footage mentioned in the original Newswire post and commented on early in this thread -- the anomalous UP DPU mentioned there, too.

I hadn't previously seen that video, and I work for a railroad.  Most of the general public will have forgotten about the crash by now, so it is not surprising that the news will present it as new information. 

The article has been updated with the information that the lead TSB investigator, Don Crawford, has been demoted in response to his comments to the media, calling for a RCMP investigation. 

Crawford started out his railroad career as a brakeman on CN's Alberta Coal Branch, a mountain railroad if there ever was one, and worked his way up to become a Engine Service Officer (CNese for Road Foreman of Engines).  He knows what he is talking about. 

I have it on good authority that the TSB will soon be releasing their report into another runaway caused by air brake failure, which occurred about 2 years ago on the CN ACB.  Crawford was also in charge of this investigation. 

Greetings from Alberta

-an Articulate Malcontent

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Posted by BaltACD on Friday, February 7, 2020 4:36 PM

SD70Dude
Overmod
NDG
CBC seems to think this is amaze-O new information.  Not sure it adds anything much to the original (Globe and Mail-sourced; interestingly no longer available) footage mentioned in the original Newswire post and commented on early in this thread -- the anomalous UP DPU mentioned there, too. 

I hadn't previously seen that video, and I work for a railroad.  Most of the general public will have forgotten about the crash by now, so it is not surprising that the news will present it as new information. 

The article has been updated with the information that the lead TSB investigator, Don Crawford, has been demoted in response to his comments to the media, calling for a RCMP investigation. 

Crawford started out his railroad career as a brakeman on CN's Alberta Coal Branch, a mountain railroad if there ever was one, and worked his way up to become a Engine Service Officer (CNese for Road Foreman of Engines).  He knows what he is talking about. 

I have it on good authority that the TSB will soon be releasing their report into another runaway caused by air brake failure, which occurred about 2 years ago on the CN ACB.  Crawford was also in charge of this investigation. 

The pile of mangled equipment, not to mention the deaths of the employees, is the prima facia evidence of there being negligence.  The real question is who's negligence was it?

Never too old to have a happy childhood!

              

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