Dave Buccolo Wrote:
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> The request from the 1st in unit was not SILLY. I
> teach 1st responders on railroad incident response
> and we always have them confirm with the dispatch
> center that all train traffic has been stopped.
> This way no one who is arriving to help becomes
> part of the problem not a be there to help so no
> the request was not silly.

Absolutely the truth. Non railroaders have no idea if the dispatcher is aware of the wreck or if there are "track lights" on CTC. Or even whether a track light will show up in the case of a wreck. And they may not have found or contacted the train crew and may not know the extent of the crew's communication with the dispatcher. They may even be in shock. The first responder wants to know that another train won't plow into the wreckage endangering those that are administering help. He/she would be remiss if they didn't inquire about the protection afforded by the railroad.

In addition, not so long ago, on dark mainline a wreck would need protection by flagging and/or contacting the dispatcher to prevent another train from running into the wreck. If the train crew were injured one would hope that someone else would have the sense to flag until protection was provided by the railroad.

I know of a case where in the early days of Amtrak there was a wreck in ABS territory and the rear brakeman/flagman went back to flag in a bitter Montana winter. After hours of freezing he left his post to seek warmth and was later fired. It might not have helped that he added some liquid warmth while in the bar he sought refuge in.

Regarding the poster that made the "silly" remark you'll notice that some people (quite a few on this board actually) offer little but criticism. And not very imaginative or entertaining at that.