Three dead.
https://www.cnn.com/2021/10/30/us/south-carolina-amtrak-vehicle-crash/index.html
Still in training.
I know it's not as concise, but the headline and story should say: "motorist places car full of people in front of oncoming train".
Ed
One more for the Darwinian score. You are correct but the headline could be worse. Just hope it was not a very rare crossing signal failure.
Amtrak - Gene Pool Cleanser
Never too old to have a happy childhood!
I really wish people would refrain from the "darwin" and "gene cleanser" comments.
Just completely no-class.
The opinions expressed here represent my own and not those of my employer, any other railroad, company, or person.
zugmannI really wish people would refrain from the "darwin" and "gene cleanser" comments. Just completely no-class.
With over 50 years of dealing with these kinds of incidents repeatedly both in the field and in the office and dealing with the disruption the events cause - class has been beaten out of me by the number of the events.
Trains are not toys and the damage they cause to a human body is beyond words to describe.
Still tasteless.
And that's coming from someone in the field as well.
Given the hour, one has to consider impairment of some sort. Add to that a possible group mentality ("you can make it!") and you have the recipe for disaster.
Larry Resident Microferroequinologist (at least at my house) Everyone goes home; Safety begins with you My Opinion. Standard Disclaimers Apply. No Expiration Date Come ride the rails with me! There's one thing about humility - the moment you think you've got it, you've lost it...
Unfortunately the article leaves more questions unanswered than answered.
I suppose following the old "what-where-when-why-how" rule before you publish doesn't apply in this digital age anymore.
zugmann Still tasteless. And that's coming from someone in the field as well.
Given that fact, one wonders what personal need is served by the darwin comments made about every rail crossing incident? Never any expression of "prayers and wishes" for these victims, dead and injured.
And why isn't this in the passenger rail forum?
"Thoughts and prayers" is so overused as to be meaningless. A stupid driver got himself and two other people killed. But, it's always the trains fault isn't it, given the headlines on every one of these incidents.
Convicted One And why isn't this in the passenger rail forum?
Fair question. But I figured the general issue is not specific to passenger trains.
You ought to hear the gallows humor in our driver's room or safety department then when they're watching the highlights of the driver's dash camera footage. One of my driver's had a near miss of a school bus that cut him off recently. All he said watching that one was the driver on that bus was a dumber than a box of rocks and every kid on that bus their parents need to buy a freaking lottery ticket as their the luckiest group he's been around. The back door of the bus missed his truck by 6 inches as he was diving for his exit on I285 in Atlanta.
Try fire and EMS sometime.
We recently got word that our state police are now wearing body cams. I warned all my people that they needed to keep that in mind before they made an off-hand comment to a trooper at an accident, etc...
It was cold, so the motorcyclist was wearing his leather jacket backwards in an effort to stay a little warmer.
Unfortunately, he got in an accident.
They said he might had lived if the ambulance folks hadn't tried to turn his head around...
OUCH!
If you think the Darwin award comments are bad, don't ever hang out with people who work in a prison - prison humor would make you faint. Less than a week after I reported to work there for the first time, one of my female co-workers told a funny but XX-rated joke that took my breath away, but made the experienced people in the group laugh uproariously. Anything to take the edg off the stress . . .
charlie hebdo one wonders what personal need is served by the darwin comments made about every rail crossing incident? Never any expression of "prayers and wishes" for these victims, dead and injured.
I think it's at least in part an attempt to appear sophisticated. A somewhat similar situation that bugs me is when someone says after an accident with severe injury resulting in death later in the hospital: "Well, if he had lived, he probably would have been a vegetable."
_____________
"A stranger's just a friend you ain't met yet." --- Dave Gardner
tree68 Try fire and EMS sometime. We recently got word that our state police are now wearing body cams. I warned all my people that they needed to keep that in mind before they made an off-hand comment to a trooper at an accident, etc... It was cold, so the motorcyclist was wearing his leather jacket backwards in an effort to stay a little warmer. Unfortunately, he got in an accident. They said he might had lived if the ambulance folks hadn't tried to turn his head around...
You might give credit for that story to Dave Gardner, who recorded it in 1959 on his album " Rejoice Dear hearts".
Paul of Covington charlie hebdo one wonders what personal need is served by the darwin comments made about every rail crossing incident? Never any expression of "prayers and wishes" for these victims, dead and injured. I think it's at least in part an attempt to appear sophisticated. A somewhat similar situation that bugs me is when someone says after an accident with severe injury resulting in death later in the hospital: "Well, if he had lived, he probably would have been a vegetable."
No! it is absolute FRUSTRATION that it continued through the 51+ years of my employment as well as the 5 years I have been retired. To those DIRECTLY involved it is one or another kind of HELL, to those not DIRECTLY involved it SOSDD. After 56+ years of SOSDD one loses all sympathy for the carnage and only disgust that it continues to happen.
At this point there is a Nationwide Grade Crossing Improvement Fund which is funded by the Feds. Additionally, most states have one as well. Neither of them ever runs out of money. The real problem with fixing railroad crossing in this country is not lack of funds it is jurisdictional disputes over who will manage the project and maintain the crossing after improvement. Very sad. It is another item Congress needs to understand better and fix.
I thought it was pretty simple. Who ever crosses an established right of way, pays. Now I realize that it might be hard to determine if a trail that was crossed by a railroad in 1872 that's now a four lane highway, but in most cases, the documentation is there. And that's what you pay lawyers for, to dig up the information.
As far as "Darwin" comments, I think it's no more than a way of saying "How freaking stupid can you be?"
CMStPnP At this point there is a Nationwide Grade Crossing Improvement Fund which is funded by the Feds. Additionally, most states have one as well. Neither of them ever runs out of money. The real problem with fixing railroad crossing in this country is not lack of funds it is jurisdictional disputes over who will manage the project and maintain the crossing after improvement. Very sad. It is another item Congress needs to understand better and fix.
No matter how one improves a crossing, there will always be someone who will challenge the improvement.
Years ago a crew was doubling out a military train at our nearby military installation. In the process they had necessarily blocked several crossings.
One ambitious young fellow thought his 4WD Ford Ranger pickup was up to the task and he tried to cross the tracks between crossings.
He got high centered on the tracks. I heard the old head engineer on the radio say "I've never seen anything like that..."
And I think most of us have seen the image of the semi that apparently drove through a field before getting similarly hung up.
I recall reading of a vehicle that came off an overpass and landed on tracks. I don't think it was struck, but...
And how many times have vehicles struck the side of a train in broad daylight?
They will find a way.
Back in the 70's my brother and his buddies were driving around in a state of intoxication in my dad's Dodge Ramcharger and thought it would be fun to try to 4-wheel it across the tracks. Luckily for them they managed to get out of the high-centered vehicle before the North Coast Hiawatha plowed into it at track speed.
All the facts aren't in.. maybe there was a crossing malfunction. I've encountered those. One in particular is memorable. It was a CN crossing in Toronto. The train would come through and THEN the lights and crossing arm would come down. I called CN, and the problem was soon fixed. But that could very easily have turned into a serious accident as that crossing is heavily used..
Last week the California Zephyr hit a garbage truck on the BNSF in southern Iowa. The reporter on the TV station I saw the report (Des Moines based) said investigators had not determined what caused the collision. The crossing was in a rural area and was protected by cross bucks and yield sign, no lights or gates. I'd venture that the driver drove out in front of the train. The truck driver was life flighted and is recovering last I knew. The engineer was slightly injured.
Anecdotally, I've noticed that many of the grade crossing accidents in my territory often involve the faster intermodal trains. Since there are more slower trains out there, I wonder if some drivers get conditioned to expect the slower trains and then get caught by the faster trains at the crossings.
Jeff
jeffhergert... Anecdotally, I've noticed that many of the grade crossing accidents in my territory often involve the faster intermodal trains. Since there are more slower trains out there, I wonder if some drivers get conditioned to expect the slower trains and then get caught by the faster trains at the crossings. Jeff
Isn't part of the reasoning for locomotive Ditch Lights to make it easier for those observing the front of the train to more accurately gauge the speed of the train?
The drivers would have to look to notice them first...
BaltACD jeffhergert ... Anecdotally, I've noticed that many of the grade crossing accidents in my territory often involve the faster intermodal trains. Since there are more slower trains out there, I wonder if some drivers get conditioned to expect the slower trains and then get caught by the faster trains at the crossings. Jeff Isn't part of the reasoning for locomotive Ditch Lights to make it easier for those observing the front of the train to more accurately gauge the speed of the train?
jeffhergert ... Anecdotally, I've noticed that many of the grade crossing accidents in my territory often involve the faster intermodal trains. Since there are more slower trains out there, I wonder if some drivers get conditioned to expect the slower trains and then get caught by the faster trains at the crossings. Jeff
Thanks to Chris / CopCarSS for my avatar.
tree68 CMStPnP At this point there is a Nationwide Grade Crossing Improvement Fund which is funded by the Feds. Additionally, most states have one as well. Neither of them ever runs out of money. The real problem with fixing railroad crossing in this country is not lack of funds it is jurisdictional disputes over who will manage the project and maintain the crossing after improvement. Very sad. It is another item Congress needs to understand better and fix. No matter how one improves a crossing, there will always be someone who will challenge the improvement. Years ago a crew was doubling out a military train at our nearby military installation. In the process they had necessarily blocked several crossings. One ambitious young fellow thought his 4WD Ford Ranger pickup was up to the task and he tried to cross the tracks between crossings. He got high centered on the tracks. I heard the old head engineer on the radio say "I've never seen anything like that..." And I think most of us have seen the image of the semi that apparently drove through a field before getting similarly hung up. I recall reading of a vehicle that came off an overpass and landed on tracks. I don't think it was struck, but... And how many times have vehicles struck the side of a train in broad daylight? They will find a way.
So why even bother trying prevention?
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