Two trains collided on the former DM&IR Iron Range Sub. near the siding and track scales at Highland, MN. Five crewmen on the two trains. One person airlifted from the scene, and one reported to be still trapped.
No deaths. 5 injured, two in critical condition. Southbound loads were pulling out of the siding about colliding with a Northbound MT’s about 2500’ from the switch. DMIR #401 is pretty much toast. 5 IC SD40-3’s and 1 DMIR SD40-3 involved.
http://www.duluthnewstribune.com/event/image/id/57243/headline/Train%20crash%20near%20Two%20Harbors/
Thanks for that link to the aerial photo. From the train-track dynamics standpoint, note that all the locos appear to have stayed on the rails, but the first 5 or so short ore ‘jennies’ behind them derailed and jack-knifed. More surprisingly, the loads appear to have done so just as much as the empties.
Best wishes to and prayers for the crews’ speedy recovery to full health.
- Paul North.
CN is going to operate a train of empties from Two Harbors to Duluth via their trackage rights over the North Shore Scenic Railway. This will be the first CN movement over the line, the previous moves were made during the Missabe era.
TRAINS has obtained a CN report that cites “employee failure” as the cause of the crash, though it doesn’t specify anything more. I’ve posted an updated story to News Wire. Let’s hope the guys still hospitalized come out of it OK.
Tell me this…How come when there is a car-train crash and the driver is at fault, people beriddle the driver almost laughing at their stupid mistake (almost to saying that they desearved to die) but when a railroader does an “employee failure”, out comes the prayers and well wishes to the ones involved?
As to the employees that were abiding by the rules, get well soon.
As for the others, who ignored whatever you were supposed to do and didnt do it, Im sending my prayers elsewhere. You dont desearve any pity at all. If you would have followed the rules, this wouldnt have happened. . You broke the rules (assuming that is what “employee failure” is), now you have to live with your stupid mistake.
There are going to be people that will take this to the extreame but i dont care. Buck up. They broke the rules just like the driver who went around the gates, tried to beat the train, walking on the tracks, trespassing…ect. They get what they have coming to them…Karma
All I will say about the post above is Wow!
According to the Breaking News Banner on the Duluth News Tribune website. Its seems the Dispatcher gave Track Authority to both trains to be on that track. Seems all the employees on the two trains were acting according to the rules. Sounds to me the dispatcher dropped the ball. Sad when something like this happens. Also sad to hear that DMIR #401 is toast. Speedy recovery to both crews.
Spoken like a fresh 90-day college whiz kid trainmaster.
Buck up and answer me this: how many years of experience do you have on the railroad?
Lots of idiot drivers know the risk of trying to beat the train - they are aware of the danger yet choose to take part in the action. These are the drivers that go around gates, or are fully aware of the train coming. Show me one crew that would intentionally violate a rule to have a head on collision?
And seeing how this looks to be maybe a dispatcher mistake (heaven forbid we practice patience and wait for some sort of investigation), then I guess your previous comments are nothing but hot air and needless trolling.
And sir, I never take pleasure when someone gets hurt or is killed. I may not have much sympathy for someone drunk off his ass that broadsides a train, but I don’t wish ha
I don’t even know how to respond to this statement. I won’t speak for you, or speculate on what drives you to throw stones at others in their time of suffering. I will, however, speak for me. When I worked for the railroad, I did my best, but I also made some mistakes. In one instance, on the first day I worked the yard, I let a boxcar get away from me; had to chase it down on foot, jump on board, and twist on a handbrake. It was my fault. Somebody could have gotten hurt. I got lucky, and nobody did.
So let me reiterate my best wishes to all those recovering from yesterday’s crash, especially those who worked in good faith but made mistakes they’ll have to live with for the rest of their lives. For the sake of their family, friends, and community, may they find the peace and strength to carry on with their lives.
[quote user=“Soo 6604”]
Andy Cummings:
TRAINS has obtained a CN report that cites “employee failure” as the cause of the crash, though it doesn’t specify anything more. I’ve posted an updated story to News Wire. Let’s hope the guys still hospitalized come out of it OK.
Tell me this…How come when there is a car-train crash and the driver is at fault, people beriddle the driver almost laughing at their stupid mistake (almost to saying that they desearved to die) but when a railroader does an “employee failure”, out comes the prayers and well wishes to the ones involved?
As to the employees that were abiding by the rules, get well soon.
As for the others, who ignored whatever you were supposed to do and didnt do it, Im sending my prayers elsewhere. You dont desearve any pity at all. If you would have followed the rules, this wouldnt have happened. . You broke the rules (assuming that is what “employee failure” is), now you have to live
On a different note Hulcher has the track open, and the detour over the lakefront line was canceled at the last minute as the crew was about to get a warrant. All six locomotives involved (5 IC SD40-3s and 1 DM&IR SD40-3) have been pulled clear of the ROW and will be scrapped.
John Beaulieu
zug: I found the poster Soo’s comments to be distasteful, as well. To me, accidents of any kind should be treated as a tragic event that needs investigation primarily for prevention, not liability. There just isn’t anything funny about folks’ suffering and death.
I don’t think it is just RRers who are not active on this forum lately. The overall activity seems to have sunk like a stone, even with a few interesting threads.
Oh, I don’t know, could be because those poor automobile drivers often have a choice, like not driving around gates, or maybe stepping on the brakes…although their actions usually indicate years upon years of reckless behavior and driving habits.
Could be because they could steer, make a choice, stop quickly…
Could be because most of the forum members like railroaders, and come here to discuss railroading, which of course begs the question of your presence here.
Trust me, if this was dark territory, then there are only a few ways for this to have happened, and the few railroaders who have not left here in disgust could most likely list them on one hand, and with the exception of a picked switch, all involve some form of “employee failure”.
Not all would involve the T&E portion of employees.
And one of the major reasons we don’t slam the railroader is because they learn from their mistake, where as most motorist seem to repeat the same bad behavior over and over.
And bet your bottom dollar if a dispatcher allowed both trains to occupy the main at the same time with out issuing joint track and time to both, then that dispatcher will most likely never sit at the console again.
Lastly, how many accidents are caused by employee failure as opposed to how many accidents are caused by motorist and trespassers foolish actions?
.
Pretty sure the latter group has a good sized lead here…
After all, driving around lowered gates is not a simple mistake, it is a intentional action on the part of the driver.
[quote user=“Soo 6604”]
Andy Cummings:
TRAINS has obtained a CN report that cites “employee failure” as the cause of the crash, though it doesn’t specify anything more. I’ve posted an updated story to News Wire. Let’s hope the guys still hospitalized come out of it OK.
People make mistakes. Sometimes those mistakes have serious consequences. I doubt that the crew who caused the collision caused it on purpose or with malice.
If the crew at fault was under the influence of drugs, alcohol or was distracted by texting or the like, I would be sorely disappointed, but absent a showing of that, the comments by Soo 6604 were grossly out of line and pathetically immature.
I will bet the southbound crew was sleeping! Easy to do on a nice sunny day – rocking down the track. Even with extra folks on board it could happen. This is one reason to get on the radio as you approach a meet and see who is there! Even though radio chatter is discouraged, an attempt to call the southbound would have signaled trouble for the other train.
I think this might be the answer to the entire question. We have sympathy for the railroaders because they made a mistake. We have less sympathy for auto drivers because trying to beat the train was, in most cases, a conscious decision.
Humans make mistakes.
I did a google search on this earlier today and could only find one photo. Maybe more will be out there soon.
When I die, I want to go peacefully in my sleep.
As opposed to screaming like the passengers riding along with me.
It looks like several wrecks we’ve seen in the past. One train is set to take the siding. They come rolling up and doze off on the slow crawl, they roll into and back out of the siding and into the path of the oncoming movement. The BNSF Kismet, CA wreck was the same situation.
Honest question - not accusing or trying to spread the blame, but just wondering if there might have been a ‘last chance’ here to avert disaster: Presuming the above report is correct - if those Track Warrants were given over the radio by the DS, would either or both crews have heard the other crew’s warrant being given ?
It’s not a long line, so they might allhave been within radio range of each other.
Or, I could see if the warrants were faxed or e-mailed to one or both terminals, then there likely wouldn’t be any way that the other crew would have been aware of the conflict.
- Paul North.
Right now, it’s looking like the dispatcher gave both trains warrants for that stretch of track. It’s possible that the SB was given a restriction to wait until the northbound pass before entering the main, but the fact is until the official records come out, it’s pure speculation at this point.
Does the DMIR use any form of Computer Aided Dispatching?