Amateur train wreck forensics

[Murphy Siding]

On Friday there was a derailment on the Rapid City, Fort Pierre & Western Railroad at Elkton S.D., a half hour away from our lake cabin. A car ran into a moving train, causing it to derail. The car burst into flames and the 2 occupants were killed.

When we drove by there today, there were probably 20 semis loaded with Hulcher equipment and a lot of people working there.

It appears the train was empty grain cars and empty ethanol tanks. There were between 6 and 12 cars derailed, 1 tank and the rest hoppers, half a dozen on their sides.  Nothing spilled out so I'd say the train was empty, heading west. There were cars still on the tracks east and west of the wreck, so I'd say the car hit somewhere in the middle of the train.

The derailment caused cars to crash into a trackside grain storage silo, tearing it apart. A couple of the cars were really battered. Since the cars on their sides are on the south side of the tracks, I'd say the car was southbound. 

The tracks cross hiway 13 on the north edge of the town. There's a 4-way stop 1 block north of the tracks. There are lights, but I don't recall crossing arms. This is fairly open, flat farm country. At 7:00 in full daylight, you could see any part of a train west of the intersection literally a mile away. I'd say the lights are visible 2-3 miles away. 

Long and short of it, I don't think the investigation is going to find that this was an accident. Heading south, most of the traffic follows a curve to the west about a half mile north of the intersection. You must turn left off the hiway, so to speak, to continue going south on the road. The  car was a 2011 Kia, not exactly a heavyweight. If it had stopped at the 4-way, it would have only been going maybe 5 miles an hour- right past the flashing lights into the side of a very visible train.

The fact that a Kia hit a train hard enough to cause a big derailment and fire suggests a high rate of speed. It sure looks to me that someone deliberately ran into a visible train at a high speed, ignoring the stop sign and the flashing lights. I feel sorry for the friends and families of the people killed.

[tree68]

I presume that's the Cornell Street crossing - that fits your description.

While your assumption certainly bears consideration, it looks to me from online maps and satellite images, that a vehicle travelling south on ND13 could go straight instead of bearing left on the curve, which would bring it directly onto the crossing.

That leaves the possibility of someone falling asleep or being otherwise incapacitated thus missing the curve.  A medical issue is a possibility.

There may be a back story.  We recently had a traffic incident at which a pickup left the road at considerable speed and collided with a substantial tree.  No skid marks.  Between the collision and the ensuing fire, the driver did not survive.  There was unconfirmed scuttlebutt that there were family issues involved.

Sad outcome regardless.

[CMStPnP]

tree68

That leaves the possibility of someone falling asleep or being otherwise incapacitated thus missing the curve.  A medical issue is a possibility.

I've seen that a lot on the roads in Texas, people falling asleep while driving or at a traffic light.   I suspect it is sleep apnea and the driver is unaware they have it.  It's kind of scary and I noticed the incidents have been increasing over the recent years.

[Murphy Siding]

tree68

I presume that's the Cornell Street crossing - that fits you

 

tree68

I presume that's the Cornell Street crossing - that fits your description.

While your assumption certainly bears consideration, it looks to me from online maps and satellite images, that a vehicle travelling south on ND13 could go straight instead of bearing left on the curve, which would bring it directly onto the crossing.

That leaves the possibility of someone falling asleep or being otherwise incapacitated thus missing the curve.  A medical issue is a possibility.

There may be a back story.  We recently had a traffic incident at which a pickup left the road at considerable speed and collided with a substantial tree.  No skid marks.  Between the collision and the ensuing fire, the driver did not survive.  There was unconfirmed scuttlebutt that there were family issues involved.

Sad outcome regardless.

 

That's. SD13 (the other Dakota ) and right hand turn to follow the highway. The big curve is sort of a bipass. It's a little banked so you kind of pop over something of a little rise if you continue straight south. I think the collision was at the Cornell street crossing, because the cars on their sides are about at  Buffalo street. You may be right about other factors.

[SD70Dude]

It's not the impulse of the crash that causes a derailment, stuff will get wedged under the cars and the wheels will climb up and go off the rails.  It doesn't take much to derail empties, packed dirt or ice in a crossing flangeway will do it.  I've also heard of large animals like moose causing derailments if they roll under the engines and end up in just the wrong place back in the train.