Bad Metra accident on the UP Geneva Sub - Chicago IL

[Chris30]

The way that I understand it is that the garbage truck was a big 18 wheel semi (trailer or dumpster full of garbage). The engine on the Metra train slammed into the heavy trailer causing quite a jolt to the train and its riders. The trailer went flying into the utility truck with the workers in the bucket. That had to be a very wild ride for the workers in the bucket.

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[Anonymous]

Ouch!!! What a mess, from the looks of it it could have been much worse.

[CShaveRR]

Sarah, scoots are allowed to go 60 in that area (near Milepost 5, if you want to check your TT--AMG), though he may not have been traveling that fast. From what I surmised, the train sent the garbage truck ricocheting into the utility truck. One witness said that a freight had cleared the crossing and the gates had gone up, and when the garbage truck started to cross they went back down for the scoot, and he was "trapped". Not sure there, but the fact that he was making a turn may have contributed to that. He should have just kept going--the gates have some give to them.

[CSXrules4eva]

Oh my sounds like human error to me. What I don't understand is this.......What was the reason why the driver of the semi crashed into the untility truck, which caused the "garbage semi driver" to get into the path of an oncomming train?? Was he asleep behind the wheel, or was he not paying attention, was it a mechanical issue??

I also wonder how fast was the scoot going in order to cause lots of injurys to the passengers?? Unless these people were up and walking around or something to that effect.

[n012944]

QUOTE: Originally posted by Poppa_Zit

My theory is some of them may have suffered what we called "IFI syndrome" when I was assigned to an ambulance crew. That malady was also recognized by all local hospitals over the "MERCI" radio.

This malady usually occured when one automobile rear-ended another. The occupants in the front auto, upon time passing allowing for greater thought, suddenly came up with mysterious neck and shoulder injuries. Heck, there were periods where we were putting cervical collars and half-backboards on people involved in fender-benders where NEITHER car showed any damage.

BTW, "IFI syndrome" is shorthand for "Insurance Fraud Injury Syndrome," terms we could not use over the air but could warn the hospital emergency room in advance that the victims were anything but critical. We saw a lot of it, people involved in a very minor bump who suddenly realized they may have hit the jackpot..

I was thinking the same thing, it looks a lot better in court if you went to the hospital.


Bert

[Poppa_Zit]

My theory is some of them may have suffered what we called "IFI syndrome" when I was assigned to an ambulance crew. That malady was also recognized by all local hospitals over the "MERCI" radio.

This malady usually occured when one automobile rear-ended another. The occupants in the front auto, upon time passing allowing for greater thought, suddenly came up with mysterious neck and shoulder injuries. Heck, there were periods where we were putting cervical collars and half-backboards on people involved in fender-benders where NEITHER car showed any damage.

BTW, "IFI syndrome" is shorthand for "Insurance Fraud Injury Syndrome," terms we could not use over the air but could warn the hospital emergency room in advance that the victims were anything but critical. We saw a lot of it, people involved in a very minor bump who suddenly realized they may have hit the jackpot..

[DrummingTrainfan]

I'm going to jump on the theory that perhaps people were on the stairs and fell or were between cars.

[Hugh Jampton]

QUOTE: Originally posted by zardoz

I cannot figure out how people on the train got injured. The trains do not stop fast enough to cause excessive negative-G forces. Even if the engineer put the jammer on top of the dynamic, it still would not stop that fast.

Maybe not in the normal course of things, (round our way emergency applications of passenger trains are at a brake rate of 0.013 times the acceleration due to gravity) but there can be quite a jolt when a train hits a stationary object (especially something as heavy as a truck) and it is quite possible that these minor injuries were caused by their heads impacted on the back of the seat in front of them, which are usually made of hard plastic.

[SchemerBob]

QUOTE: Originally posted by techguy57

Moving between cars or on the steps in the center of the cars maybe? Like between first and second car. Perhaps from some lateral movement? I don't know, just speculation. It said folks on the train just suffered cuts and bumps and a couple of them were older.

Still it is interesting seeing as the train would have been in pull mode.

Mike

And if the train was in push mode things would have been a lot messier.

[techguy57]

Moving between cars or on the steps in the center of the cars maybe? Like between first and second car. Perhaps from some lateral movement? I don't know, just speculation. It said folks on the train just suffered cuts and bumps and a couple of them were older.

Still it is interesting seeing as the train would have been in pull mode.

Mike

[zardoz]

I cannot figure out how people on the train got injured. The trains do not stop fast enough to cause excessive negative-G forces. Even if the engineer put the jammer on top of the dynamic, it still would not stop that fast.

[eolafan]

Stop tra***alking!

[Chris30]

There was a bad accident/collision on the UP Geneva Sub (Metra UP West Line) yesterday (6/28) afternoon at Keeler Ave in Chicago. A westbound scoot, a loaded garbage truck and a utility truck that had workers in raised bucket working on power lines were all involved. Several people were injured, stinky garbage was thrown everywhere and the UP West Line afternoon rush was affected. The link to the story in the Chicago Tribune:

[code]http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/chi-060628metra-rushhour,1,5297146.story?coll=chi-news-hed[/code]

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