Amtrak derails, car on I-5 Washington state

[JagXKR]

https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-ne ... of-30-mph/

Speed limit over that bridge is indeed 30 mph. Also this from the article

The railway route had recently undergone a $181 million retrofit program in order to speed up passenger service that previously traveled away from the freeway and along the coast. Part of that retrofit was to include “positive train control” systems that can prevent dangerous situations such as excessive speed.

The 14.5-mile corridor is now equipped for positive train control equipment, but the train controls aren’t operating yet in that area, said Amtrak CEO Richard Anderson. An Amtrak spokesman said the equipment was still being tested.

[GO4it]

Can we say Lawsuits? Justifiably so. Someone's head is gonna roll.

[waynetyea]

thats away too fast . anyone could see that this was a significant bend in the track... this guy was probably on his phone when it happened. bet ya cant find his phone. or he will have amnesia. or he was hired without any qualifications other than being related to someone in personell. who needs terrorism when they have nepotism.

[Fancy]

viewtopic.php?f=28&t=76239&p=2280346#p2280346

[dle]

https://www.castanet.net/edition/news-s ... htm#214449


Medical issue? Terrorist attack of some sort? Sounds like seeing a "bear in every bush" I know, BUT.....worth considering as train was going double the speed but no call in by the engineer of mechanical failure occurring, new trainee in the seat next to the engineer, engineer did not activate other safety technology to indicate he knew there was a problem.

Then again, the big issue is that train should NEVER have been on that track since the train stopping technology hadn't been completed and activated on the track for use.

Article doesn't say whether the trainee, engineer or anyone else who was up front is alive to shed some light on what went wrong...

[Fancy]

A federal official told The Associated Press that investigators are looking into whether the engineer was distracted by the presence of an employee-in-training next to him in the locomotive. The official, who was not authorized to discuss the matter publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity, said investigators want to know whether the engineer lost "situational awareness."

Very serious accusation when utmost safety should have been practised when training another.

[ferri]

https://www.castanet.net/edition/news-story-214449-5-.htm#214449


Medical issue? Terrorist attack of some sort? Sounds like seeing a "bear in every bush" I know, BUT.....worth considering as train was going double the speed but no call in by the engineer of mechanical failure occurring, new trainee in the seat next to the engineer, engineer did not activate other safety technology to indicate he knew there was a problem.

Then again, the big issue is that train should NEVER have been on that track since the train stopping technology hadn't been completed and activated on the track for use.

Article doesn't say whether the trainee, engineer or anyone else who was up front is alive to shed some light on what went wrong...

The engineer is alive. He was the one that called in after the crash.

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-wash ... SKBN1ED1ZF

[gman313]

A federal official told The Associated Press that investigators are looking into whether the engineer was distracted by the presence of an employee-in-training next to him in the locomotive. The official, who was not authorized to discuss the matter publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity, said investigators want to know whether the engineer lost "situational awareness."

Very serious accusation when utmost safety should have been practised when training another.

loss of situational awareness can happen for a number of reasons. The human mind can only handle so much at one time something may have caused it. Happens to flights crews too and they train hard to prevent it. But when alarms are going off and your not sure the problem it happens.

[ferri]

Train derailment near Olympia: Officials pushed ‘aggressive’ timeline before safety technology was ready

The corridor where an Amtrak train derailed Monday was years in the making. But in recent months, officials were confronting a mix of deadlines.

Washington state transportation leaders had long ago envisioned the corridor would be refurbished by 2019, according to state records, but to fully collect federal stimulus money, construction had to be completed by mid-2017. The state then vowed to open the line this fall.

Officials kept that promise, launching the new Point Defiance Bypass route on Monday. But had they waited just a few more months, the service would have included a critical safety feature that automatically slows trains if they exceed speed limits.

More here:
https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-ne ... -120386021

[Glacier]

So it comes down to money!

[ferri]

Third Amtrak victim identified, was convicted of child porn

TACOMA, Wash. - The third victim killed in Monday's Amtrak derailment along Interstate 5 has been identified as a man who previously confessed to federal charges of possessing massive amounts of child pornography.
Benjamin Gran, 40, of Auburn pleaded guilty to the pornography charges in 2013 in U.S. District Court. He was sentenced in January 2014.

http://komonews.com/news/local/third-am ... child-porn

[Glacier]

Karma? Or would that Traina?

[ferri]

Video: Train crew not using electronic devices before crash

SEATTLE (AP) — Video from the cab of the Amtrak train that hurtled off the tracks in Washington state, killing three people and injuring dozens, shows that the engineer did not appear to be using a cellphone or any other personal electronic device just before the derailment, federal investigators said Friday.

More here: http://katu.com/news/local/video-train- ... fore-crash

[Fancy]

That would be the good news - the bad news (other than what has already happened) is still to come.