Number 90 posted:The focus, though, is on why the first crew did not secure the train with hand brakes (every car on the train if it was loaded on a 2% grade). They are Canadian. Surely they have heard of the Lac Megantic disaster, and surely their rules require securing the train with hand brakes under the conditions present when they stopped with an emergency application. That is the root cause: Failure to properly secure the train after experiencing an emergency brake application on a heavy descending grade. The report indicates that the first crew likely had time to do this, while the second crew may not have been present long enough to do it. The reason for the emergency brake application is important, but regardless, the root cause is what I highlighted in bold.
Sadly many times we overlook something or are distracted and the result is far worse than we imagined
wb47 posted:Assuming a 70 car train, about how long would it take to set the hand brakes on all of the cars?
Excellent question. Just being out in -30 air temp weather for a few minutes is brutal, do they have equipment on the train for the employees to complete this task?
