Hope you all don’t mind, but I felt this vid should be seen by everyone here as a reminder and wake-up call. This video is a saddening shocker as to what can happen when we become too comfortable on railroad property…even with permission.
Eye opener for me as I used to photograph moving trains as well. I usually stayed about 25ft away from fast trains and 10 to 15 feet from drifting locomotives, keeping in mind the potential dangers.
I’ve read some of the posts regarding railfan safety from a number of the prototype railroaders that frequent here. You guys are right on the mark.
After seeing this, I can appreciate the mental pain locomotive crews experience after an avoidable tragedy like this.
There was a big discussion on this a month or two ago. It covered the gamette from it’s the railfans fault to the engineers fault. Either way, not a smart move.
I think that the term foamer is way over used just look at the comments, I am not one, i just railfan but they profile anyone with a camera watching trains as a foamer. Mike
Did the guy survive? Looks like the engine just pulled him under. Why would someone stand that close to a train ??
Lesson from this: always make sure the train will clear you! When I’m watching trains close-up, I usually look for a nearby object, like a sign or pole or something, that’s next to the tracks, and stay as far back as it is. The “yellow line” on the platforms is also there for this very reason…to keep people back from the tracks!
They say that a fast-moving train can actually suck you in if you’re standing too close.
He did. If I remember right on the other post that disscussed this same thing, he tried to sue the RR and lost. Not sure if this is true based on only memory.
It’s clear that the crew can’t be counted on to obey the rules anyhow , in the end of the vids when the switchman was making the joint how many times did he go between without even a half car length ??
It’s called the “Dummy Zone”. Standing between two tracks on an active line.
Bells ringing, Gates comming down, the Sound of an older diesel, a Trainman on the front platform of the locomotive, and the Passenger Train crew is just standing around talking in stead of watching for hazards.
First of all, the guy was an idiot for standing so close, he should have known better.
Second, an employee walks RIGHT BY THE GUY and didn’t warn him (or at least it appeared he didn’t) he just gave the guy a glance, and moved on.
Third, it didn’t appear that the employee on the walkway on the back was doing anything to warn him either… The horn was blowing however, and the gates were going down.,… That is a hint and a half right there.
In my opinion, many people had a role to play here, even though the responsibility, in my opinion rests with the who got hit, he simply should have known better. However, in the interest of preventing an accident, and covering their own heinies, someone from the railroad should have told the guy to move. If he chose not to listen, then it was his own fault…
Without a doubt the “rail-fan” was a little too engrossed in what he was doing. Not everyone acts with common sense and people need to look out for one another. However, it does suprise me that none of the RR employees would have told the guy he could see everything just fine off the ballast line. If I was on the head end of that Loco I would have stopped the movement and made the guy move; I’ve stopped a shove move for lesser things than that before.
Back when I was a relatively new conductor I was on a run to Chicago on a freight. I had a conductor cub with me and we had taken a siding to let an oncoming UPS train fly by. The rules back then made us dismount the engine and perform a roll-by inspection of the train. The conductor cub decided he was going to stand in the middle of the siding tracks right in front of our engine. I quickly walked up to him and explained how dangerous it was and told him to walk back with me to stand below the engineers window where we had some protection. He refused! I waved my engineer over, who was an ex marine with a temper to boot. He ripped that guy a new one, but he still didn’t get what we were telling him. He finally trudged over to where I was standing reluctantly like a little kid. I later found out this fella had a reputation for not getting the big picture, and just prayed that the guy would not get himself or someone else killed.
The REAL idiot here is the so-called conductor riding the rear of the unit. He most certainly should have swung down the engineer long before they got so close to the railfan. After all, this is tourist operation–the crews should be extra vigilant regarding persons on the right-of-way.
I “trespass” on NS property everyday. I climb all over their cars and equipment, ride their engines, throw their switches and derails…and they even give me a paycheck for doing it. Just like before, sounds like your trying to start something…
You are correct; I am trying to start something: a straight-forward discourse of the events shown in the video.
But to address your counter-claim:
Since you are here on a railfans forum, I will presume that you have more than a professional interest in railroading. And with that, I will further presume that this prediliction for railroad activities did not commence the day you hired out. So based on the above two assertions, can you say with a straight face that before you became employed by the NS, you never once trespassed on a railroad right-of-way?
If you say “yes”, then your allegations are at best unwarranted, and at worst you are a hypocrite.
If you say “no”, then I know you are at best full of ‘it’, and at worst you’re statements are malicious.
Thus, in either case your statements can be ignored.
I’m Retired, Trespass??? For me, as a railfan, yes, to take photos. I also find a lot of Railroad employies are Rail Fans or Model Railroaders and very friendly.
BUT
Being retired from a Sub-Contractor of Boston’s Massachsetts Bay Transportation Authority, to do my work I was required to have a License from the Massachusetts Dept. of Public Safety (State Police) and “Right Of Way” Safety Training every other year from the MBTA. Both the License and the MBTA ROW Training Badge are current and in my wallet.
I have a Hard Hat with the MBTA sticker and a bright orange vest in my car. I know to wear high boots when near the tracks, wear glasses, never walk in the tracks, and never, never stand between the tracks (Dummy Area).
Stay back at least 10 feet from a standing train, 15 feet if a moving train. If a train is approaching, stand back, face the locomotive, and stand still.
It still looks like a lot of violations in this accident in PA.
I have watched that video several times, but I am still struck by the feeling that something just does not seem to make sense. What is the guy photographing? Being that he is in the middle of a railroad setting, it seems likely that he was photographing a railroad subject. Yet it seems odd that he would be so preoccupied with a railroad subject that is apparently static that he would fixate on it to the complete exclusion of the more obvious dynamic subject rolling up right behind him.
If he was aware of the approaching locomotive, he must have thought he was in the clear. If he was not aware of the approaching locomotive, one possible explanation was that he could not hear.
It is obvious that the struck person was in a fouling position while the engine was still far enough away to stop or be flagged to stop, since the person did not move at all during the approach. In fact, the person appeared to be holding a purposefully fixed pose in order to make a video shot. Is that person leaning back on some sort of stool device as a kind of third leg prop? I see what looks like a three-legged person.
The man riding the point of the engine was there to prevent the very thing that happened, however, he may have just been used to passing by people near the track while assuming that they always stand clear due to their own awareness of the hazard.