Today’s news services are reporting about investigators reconstructing the scene of the train disaster that killed 11 people in northern Victoria as part the investigation into the cause of the crash.
Apparently authorities will simulate the conditions of the crash using a train and truck at the site, to determine the visibility available to both the train engineer and the truck driver as each approached the crossing.
Investigators will borrow a V/Line locomotive for the exercise, which will run through the intersection about the same time of the day as last week’s crash. The results will be used to complete computer modelling of the crash and will form part of evidence police will hand to the coroner. The rail line could reopen today if police and rail safety authorities approved.
Has scene recontruction been used in rail collisions “up over”?
I’ve used reanactments as part of internal investigations of injuries and derailments. Never been involved in a grade crossing investigation so I can’t comment.
I understand that one of the reasons for conducting the re-enactment is that after the accident, it was reported that several complaints had been lodged with various bodies, because it was difficult to see that the crossing lights were flashing when the sun had set low enough in the sky to shine directly onto the lights themselves.
Whether that is the case in this accident will no doubt become apparent when the re-enactment is completed.
Currently involved in two such re-inactments, one using computer animation and one using conventional methods. (I love having to be told to hide or get out of the frame of the picture)
Hopefully the state hires an outfit that has a firm grasp on reality and is good with details, as well as a good handle on the technical side. (Had one re-inactment that showed wheel flange on wrong side/field side of the running rail - thankfully not in court).
NTSB will from time to time “re-enact” certain aspects of accidents for the purpose of gauging things like sight distances, sound travel, etc. These re-enactments are thoroughly described in the accident reports.
One typical example is in this report on a train vs school bus collision in 2000. (School bus driver claimed that she had ‘stopped, looked and listened’ while the onboard camera on the bus clearly showed that she just blew into the crossing without stopping or slowing down much, as she had done on all but one of the days that they had tapes for.)