As we all know, a subway train derailed in Chicago today. It was blamed on Operator error.
Well, this afternoon, two trains collided in Boston.
It seems doubtful to me that this is some kind of coordinated terrorist attack, considering there would have to be two different MO's at work; derailment and collision.
But, you know what? The two problems with trains in one day got me to thinking. Wasn't there another train accident just a week ago?
No. It wasn't a week ago. It was about 2 1/2 months ago (time flies when your under Jihadi attack). March 4th, to be precise.
A train derailed in MECCA, Califonia. Yes, Mecca, California. And, when it derailed it spilled toxic acid, forcing local residents to be evacuated from their homes for days on end.
Hmm:
MECCA, Calif.—Dozens of people who had to leave homes in the southeastern
California desert after a train derailment spewed toxic fumes into the air might
not be allowed to return for several days, a fire official said Wednesday.
Hazardous material crews and Union Pacific workers were still
struggling to remove the 29 train cars that derailed around 9 p.m. Monday and
still hadn't drained all the toxic acid from several toppled tankers, said
Riverside County fire Capt. Fernando Herrera.
Herrera said he could not name an exact date when residents would be
allowed to return home.
"There's at least another three more (tankers) that need to be
offloaded and as long as that continues, we can't let anyone back in," he said.
"It's moving, but it's slow."
A community meeting was scheduled Wednesday night to answer questions
from evacuees. Some farmers in the agricultural area were being allowed in under
escort to water their crops, he said.
Sixty residents of about 40 rural homes were evacuated after a 65-car
train derailed in the community north of the Salton Sea. No injuries were
reported.
Herrera said Union Pacific was putting evacuees up in hotels.
One car leaked phosphoric acid and another may have leaked stronger
hydrochloric acid, railroad officials said. The leaks appeared to have stopped
and crews were pouring soil over acid pooled on the ground, Herrera
said.The cause of the accident was under investigation.
I somehow doubt these are related terror attacks, but I think they are worth noting. One is happenstance. Two is coincidence, but three is a trend, right?
Maybe.
UPDATED: Anonymous comments that
It appears that derailments are becoming quite commonplace . . .
Cargo train derails in Amherst County WDBJ 7 Roanoke - May 28 10:53 AM
Nine Train Cars Derail In Butler WTAE-TV Pittsburgh - May 28 5:08 AM
3,500 evacuated as derailed train leaks acid in US New Kerala, LA - May 19 5:12 AM
Washington, May 17 : About 3,500 people were evacuated in Lafayette in the US state of Louisiana after a derailed freight train began leaking acid, the police said late Saturday.
Train Derails Early Thursday MorningKFVS 12 Cape Girardeau Arkansas- May 22 10:34 AM
Train derails, spills coal along Illinois 121 near Decatur-Macon County Fairground
11 comments:
I have thought this before too.
And what about forest fires? There was a fatwa given to burn us (US) down.
I agree, my friend. Several of the forest fires we have had were arson, and they never found the arsonists.
Additionally, Spain and, was it, Greece have had terrible problems where much of both countries were on fire all at one time.
It appears that derailments are becoming quite commonplace . . .
Cargo train derails in Amherst County WDBJ 7 Roanoke - May 28 10:53 AM
Nine Train Cars Derail In Butler WTAE-TV Pittsburgh - May 28 5:08 AM
3,500 evacuated as derailed train leaks acid in US New Kerala, LA - May 19 5:12 AMWashington, May 17 : About 3,500 people were evacuated in Lafayette in the US state of Louisiana after a derailed freight train began leaking acid, the police said late Saturday.
Train Derails Early Thursday MorningKFVS 12 Cape Girardeau Arkansas- May 22 10:34 AM
Train derails, spills coal along Illinois 121 near Decatur-Macon County Fairground
Thanks, my Anonymous friend.
You're most welcome Pastorius.
While trying to determine how common such accidents are I came across the following:
quoting another article:
For most people a train derailment is a big deal but residents near the site say derailments are a common occurrence. Neighbors say this is the third derailment in ten months that has happened within a two mile stretch of Saturdays' crash site.
Interesting stat from BBC 2000
And here's Wiki with a list of rail accidents since 2000
14 accidents in 2000 (0 in USA)
13 accidents in 2001 (2 in USA)
19 accidents in 2002 (4 in USA)
15 accidents in 2003 (1 in USA)
18 accidents in 2004 (3 in USA)
33 accidents in 2005 (5 in USA)
36 accidents in 2006 (7 in USA)
27 accidents in 2007 (8 in USA)
18 so far this year (5 in USA)
It appears that rail accidents are on the increase based on the above - no?
Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen statement from Thursday, July 07, 2005
Train derailments an issue in three south Texas counties
(The following story by Angela Macias and Jacqueline Lane appeared at RedNova.com on July 5. Terry Briggs is Chairman of the BLET’s Texas State Legislative Board.)
DALLAS -- Blocks away from where people were slurping gumbo at a cook-off in Orange in May 2001, 11 boxcars and four tankers derailed, sparking an evacuation.
Train cars tumbled into a concrete drainage ditch in August 1999 near Beaumont's Piney Point Lane, triggering unfounded concerns that leaking material might contaminate the Lower Neches Valley Authority irrigation canal.
On June 24, 11 cars slipped from a track south of Evadale, narrowly missing the Neches River.
Major derailments such as these draw attention from gawking neighbors and a fearful public.
But most derailments don't happen on such a large scale, and garner notice only by the railroads and federal regulators required to investigate the incidents.
From 1999 to 2004, 71 derailments in Jefferson County were reported to the Federal Railroad Administration, with damages to equipment and rails totaling $5 million. In the same five years there were 16 derailments in Hardin County, causing $1.1 million in damages, and Orange County had 11 derailments costing $1.6 million.
Railroads are required to report accidents when the train carries hazardous materials, an injury occurs or if the accident involves more than $6,700 in damages, said Warren Flatau, an administration spokesman.
No injuries or deaths were reported in the mishaps, and most derailments nationwide happen in the rail yard.
Track defects -- from a worn switch point to vandalism -- are the most common cause of train derailments.
Derailments appear to be commonplace -- something the industry expects because of the 170,000 miles of track in the United States exposed to the elements, and the heavy loads carried daily.
"Derailments do happen, we recognize that," said Terry Briggs of the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers, a labor union representing railroad workers.
"There is just an endless list of things that might happen," he said.
Orange Fire Marshal Capt. Joe Mires and Fire Chief David Frenzel were parking cars at a gumbo cook-off, raising money for the Boy Scouts, when a 90-car freight train jumped the tracks in the city's downtown near Green Avenue in 2001.
Soon, a three-block area was evacauted amid fears of a chemical spill.
"It was the loudest sound I think I've ever heard in my life -- one loud, metallic 'SMACK'," bar owner Lonnie Givens recalled during an interview in 2001. "I'll never forget it."
Mires switched into firefighter mode, spending the next 11 hours assisting at the scene.
"We had to get somebody else to watch the (Scouts) while we got involved in all that," he said.
"We were dealing with (the accident) all night long."
Derailments interrupt service and upset customers, Union Pacific Railroad spokesman John Bromley said.
Clearing mangled sites means rerailing or removing damaged cars and repairing the track, which could take anywhere from 12 to 24 hours or longer, he said.
Since partial deregulation of the industry in 1980, there has been a lot of investment in maintenance and technology improves every year, Bromley said.
Union Pacific alone spends more than $1 billion annually on track maintenance, the company's single biggest capital expenditure.
Tracks today are in the best shape they've been in for many years, he said.
"In the long term, things are getting better all the time," he said. "That said, everybody's long-term goal is no accidents. Better tracks equates to a safer railroad."
More could be done to prevent derailments, Briggs, who serves as the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen's Texas legislative chairman, said.
Limiting when someone is called back to duty could reduce worker fatigue, which can lead to mishaps. Rules now allow companies to cut into an employee's mandatory time off by calling them back to work during the period, he said in a phone interview.
Inspectors also could check tracks more frequently, Briggs said.
"We realize it is very expensive to increase inspections, but we think more could be done."
The Wiki list seems to refer only to major accidents in which people were killed.
None of these recent accidents involved fatalities.
It appears this seeming cluster may not be that notable after all.
There is reason for concern (terror related or not) as the Wiki listing displays a steady increase in events.
Yes, that is certainly true.
If passenger allegations that the driver of the trolley that crashed in Newton was chatting on her cell phone turn out to be accurate, what we may have there is an outbreak of high-price-to-pay-for-stupidity. So far nothing seems to indicate SJS or anything sinister along those lines.
I'm just glad that no one was hurt in this accident. I hope that the authorities find out what caused the collision. And may it be a lesson for everyone in the future.
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