Southbound Silver Star hit dump truck in south Orlando, Fl . Truck driver did not make it. This crossing will be either closed or gates installed for Sun rail but don’t know which. Occurred at a crossing without any lights or gate. Note the stop sign in this raw video.
http://www.wftv.com/videos/news/raw-aftermath-of-train-dump-truck-crash/vh5zg/
Did you ever hear the phrase “Locking the barn door after the horse has been stolen?”
appears to be 2 locos and 10 passenger cars maybe 2 viewliners ? about 11 injuries with 4 to hospital ?
I have been by this crossing before and it appeared to have no visibility problems ?
Sun rail has proposed that all grade crossings will either be closed or gates installed. Appears that sun rail construction has not started at this location yet.
Video would indicate that this a crossing that only serves local business. I don’t know why the carriers ever agree to allow easments for these kinds of crossings. The normal level of traffic rarely is sufficient to justify more the Crossbucks as the only form of crossing protection.
Very evident that the truck caught on fire in the incident, as the FD were still watering the remains of the truck and the lead locomotive was well sooted. I am amazed the the train got stopped within a train length of the crossing.
This would be close to the south end of Phase 1 of SunRail. As this track is now property of the State it will be interesting who the ambulance chasers go after.
Even so, I work with trains everyday and it is still easy to forget the shear power and kinetic energy they posses. And people wonder why I get upset when I see trespassers.
a few thoughts
an unconfirmed report states that the truck was dumping gravel for the sun rail double tracking at that location. if so was a safety briefing given the truck driver ?
a sun rail station is already under construction about 1/2 mile south of the accident
train must have been in emergency to stop in just over 900 ft.
4, since sun rail is now the owner of the track who dispatches and were there any notations in train orders?
Just a clarafication: CSX still dispatches the via the “Central Florida Dispatcher Desk for SunRail.” Maybe that will change in the future.
Looks a lot like the crossing not far from here. No lights, no gates. Just crossbucks and yield signs.
More info — 15 injured 10 to hospital…
sun rail will be installing flashers and gates next spring.
This from tv station interesting
believe it was a regular truck pulling a trailer ?
http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/local/breakingnews/os-fatal-train-crash-20121129,0,6201903.story
good tv report
and another tv report
http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/local/florida/os-fatal-train-crash-20121129,0,6001812.story
There may be reports the truck driver had over 20 moving violations ??
^ he won’t get any more!
If true, there is an unfortunate pattern here… The driver in the Nevada crash apparently had a number of moving violations, as did the driver in the City of New Orleans accident from 10+ years ago.