BOB2 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Yep, 6900 tons of wet trona, and no proper dynamic
> braking, and a brand new "piglet" (stimulator
> trained 60 day wonder brakemen, IIRC?) just
> promoted, who'd never really handled very many
> actual trains, and no "feel" for the actual
> tonnage he was handline, who was "set up". The
> tonnage for the train was "miscalculated" (the
> polite official terminology the NTSB used in the
> final report).
>
> I seem to recall the actual train weight was
> something considerably over by 2,000+ tons more
> than it was reported to be, which Trona actually
> knew, when they were loaded an order of 6900 tons,
> and not the 4000+ tons given to the conductor and
> engineer.
>
> The manifest indicated that the braking capacity
> for that tonnage would allow the train to operate
> down the hill at column one speed, 40 mph. here
> (IIRC) max, but given the dynamic braking and
> actual weight it should have been a 20 mph. train,
> and I'd have probably asked for about 40 retainers
> to be set as well.....
>
> That weren't done, though....and so choo-choo and
> train top hill at Summit, attempt to balance train
> at speed based on reported tonnage, all ability to
> get it under control already lost by then, brake
> shoes literally burnt off, and away they went all
> of the way down Cajon, amazingly staying on the
> track, until crashing just north of the where 210
> now crosses the Palmdale cutoff.....
>
> And then, it gets even better, when engaged in
> clearing the accident, in front of the NTSB
> investigators, and all of the media, they managed
> with all of that heavy equipment dragging
> choo-choo and cars away, to severe the high
> pressure gas pipeline adjacent to the ROW, and
> blew everything to kingdom come...….
>
> A real bad day at the office...………..

Sounds like a real Blast....




....... Literally.



Thanks for the reply, Bob.