No One Was In The CN Locomotives When They Collided

Sunday, August 05, 2007 10:19 AM

An insider alleges the two CN Trains that collided along the CN rail line across from Paddle Wheel Park in Prince George Saturday, was being operated by remote control.

The two trains in question that collided with one another causing massive fire that burned for over 8 hours had no operators on board the locomotives.

(photo of water bomber dropping fire retardant on blaze submitted by Eryn Collins)

The remote control ,which can be operated some distance away from where the engine actually is, is operated with a control unit that hangs around the neck or waist of the user. In this case the remote controls were being operated by management from the railway.

These same insiders claim the braking system failed and the train became a runaway, with one unit colliding with the second unit between the 13 and 14^th car of the unit. That Runaway they say came as a result of having too many cars attached to the locomotive and it was unable to stop with its limited braking power.

Until the train was uncoupled, five tank cars containing upwards of 50,000 gallons of diesel and gasoline where attached to one of the locomotives. CN was able to detach both trains and pull them from the scene leaving a lumber car, a tank car filled with 50,000 gallons (227,000 litres) of gas. One of the locomotives remains on its side near the Fraser River; the other was completely consumed by flames. The Locomotive from the other train was also destroyed by the fire.

It was a stroke of luck that prevented a major fuel spill. The impact of the two trains caused an explosion and the resulting fire kept burning off any of the fuel that was making its way towards the river and so very little fuel actually spilled into the water.

CN spokespeople confirm that the collision took place in a side swipe fashion but beyond that say they are awaiting the results of an investigation.

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Posted on Sunday, August 05, 2007 10:19 AM in News by 250 News

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Comments

Posted by: owl on August 5 2007 11:32 AM

"CN spokespeople confirm that the collision took place in a SIDE SWIPE fashion but beyond that say they are awaiting the results of an investigation."

So does this mean wHat I think it means? The resident eyewitness report indicates the trains were going in opposite directions.

If they were on the same track it would have been head on.

If they were on parallel tracks, one of the trains must have derailed in a fashion that would have compromised the adjacent track before being hit by the other.

Or if one of the trains was in the process of switching from one track to the other, perhaps that would be called a side swipe as well.

I suppose we will learn eventually what all these words mean in relation to railway jargon.

Posted by: owl on August 5 2007 11:40 AM

I just looked at an aerial photo on PG map. There is a switch from one track to the other at the location where the accident happened. So, it is quite likely it was a switching error.

Posted by: nixy-nox on August 5 2007 11:59 AM

What happened was one train was travelling on one track and a yard job was pulling a large amount of cars the opposite direction on an adjacent track. The yard engine (remote controlled unit) jumped the tracks and ran into the train and once again CN proves their committment to safety they are always bragging about.

Posted by: owl on August 5 2007 12:03 PM

So, does anyhone know yet why the engine jumped the track? Switch not set properly? Track was damaged? Other reasons?

Posted by: Gofaster on August 5 2007 1:06 PM

I wonder if the government will now step in...pretty hard for CN to say no harm no foul with this one!.
Two derailments here in PG in two weeks....
Next one could be the killer....
And yes a large very scary fire ensued...
fortunately they managed to get most of the rail cars moved out of the way.
Foresty did a great job with the water bomber...

Posted by: Gofaster on August 5 2007 1:07 PM

One way or the other...
these trains should not be jumping tracks, rolling over, falling off..or any other such motion...

Posted by: owl on August 5 2007 1:25 PM

Trains having too many cars seems to be the method by which CN operates. Hopefully this time the feds are going to have some sort of inquiry. Something for the HH team of Harris and Hill. ... Or is it Hill and Harris? .....

Wouldn't that be the day, when they actually get something accomplished that might help this community.

Do I see beetle money?
;-)

Posted by: owl on August 5 2007 1:26 PM

Then again, it was just a small fire and no one was harmed. Engines are replaceable. They were getting new ones anyway.

Posted by: Gofaster on August 5 2007 7:36 PM

Switching error or not...too many accidents that CN has just managed to dust off as no harm no foul....
Second derail at the same spot in less than two weeks.....
I am starting to get a little concerned here now!

Posted by: YamaDooPolCat on August 5 2007 7:39 PM

How much grade is on that section of track? It hardly looks like a spot for a train to have a runaway braking problem?

Posted by: YamaDooPolCat on August 5 2007 7:53 PM

"..a stroke of luck that prevented a major fuel spill. The impact of the two trains caused an explosion and the resulting fire kept burning off any of the fuel.."

Funny that should come up. I carried the first bunch of "e" people into a oil line rupture near the Pine River a while back. Before we got there the WestCoast crew threw a flare into the spill and lit the whole thing up. It was the middle of the summer but little fire hazard as the poplars don't burn very well. I still have a picture of that fire kicking around somewhere.

I thought it was a hell of a good idea, but the government "e" crew was mad as hell. I still remember it very well. That fire saved a lot of clean up work, but those "e" guys from the government sure were mad about the fire.

It must have made an impression, because two years later the oil line broke again in the same area and the pipeline crew didn't burn it. I was the second guy on site that time and I was amazed no one had lit the oil up. The spill was far smaller, but the clean up lasted all summer. So maybe the government priority is making sure there is as big a mess as possible? Why else? Or is the "e" crew just being control freaks?

Posted by: Foo738 on August 5 2007 8:00 PM

Got this site under CN Debriefing if anyone is interested.

www.tc.gc.ca , click on "Major Issues" on the right hand side of the dark green bar along the top, then click on "The Railway Safety Act Review" on the right hand side of the page.You can read submissions from Canadians already sent in and learn how to make one.

Posted by: thereasonableman on August 5 2007 9:17 PM

So are they operating their trains by remote control now, because they are too dangerous to carry people ?

I guess it's a good motivation to stop at railway crossings when a train is approaching. It's probably un-manned and on a runaway.

Posted by: thereasonableman on August 5 2007 9:29 PM

An aside:

I'd just personally like to thank CN for getting lucky on several counts, and not killing everybody in South Fort, polluting our waterways beyond belief, blowing our infrastructure to smithereens, and disrupting commerce and trade to a crippling point.

What was the alternate press release, if you hadn't been so damn lucky ?...

.....Sorry ?

Posted by: Gofaster on August 6 2007 4:45 AM

The alternate press release.
"CITY KILLED OFF..
CN lucky, we don't have to worry about being sued"

Posted by: Chester on August 6 2007 10:04 AM

A couple of questions come to mind for me. Where was the person who was supposed to be running the train remotely? Was he standing along side the tracks? Was he watching a monitor in a building somewhere?

An eye witness claims to have heard the train whistle blowing approximately 20 times before the collision. Was his train the one out of control? Or, was he warning everyone of an enivitable crash when he saw a derailed train in front of him? Someone has to be monitoring the movement of trains on our rails. Where was the Yardmaster who used to oversee this work? Hopefully, not in Edmonton. Chester