Need I say more.
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WOW!
Always said trains do not jump off their track to run someone over.
Folks should know better.
Retired ATU member local 308
Unbelievable how stupid the common public has become! Looking back, I can't fathom letting my daughter play in such a manner on an obviously oft-used double track mainline!!
What has happened to good sense??
Andre
I sent the video around my office- lot's of gasps could be heard....
I titled the email "Stupid is as Stupid does"
And of course, if a fatality happened, it would be the railroad's fault...
Rusty
That looks like a "family photograph" scenario, most probably set up by that photographer. This is still a common genre in the photographic community, and I do not understand photographers who continue setting up photographs on live rails. Ignorance abounds.
Culling the herd.
We are truly surrounded by idiots!
Maybe certain folks do not care if they or their children are struck,mangled and dead on the scene after being struck by a train, their are two more victims the engineer and conductor in the locomotive who witness this carnage. Railroad's across the country have signs posted that trespassing on their property is illegal, people should start reading these signs, these postings are for their protection!!! Prior to retiring, I was employed in shop managemnt with a commuter railroad and have scene the results of car being struck by a passenger train after the driver went around around the lowered gates and flashing lights,needless to say, it's a troubling task for first responders who typically are the first to arrive at the scene, the engineer and conductor on the locomotive who witness the incident and the shop personnel who arrive at the scene to inspect the locomotive and passenger cars for damage, I have taken part in these events.
All you do is hold the horn and hope you don’t see pink mist
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It's called thinning of the herd... Goes the same for those who drive around crossing gates...
I'm guessing it's a requirement that if a engineer sees something like this they are reporting it to the dispatchers and if so are the dispatchers reporting it to the local authorities?
Stupid, stupid people......common sense does not abound here.
Cleansing the gene pool. In todays day and age, People should know better, But then again you cant fix STUPID!
Was this Amish, Mennonites, or Dunkards in PA., in the long dresses, but not near the Strasburg ,where they probably know what RR tracks are?
We were filming the SP 2472 one morning a few years ago. They were doing a high speed run for the camera. Everyone was told to stay put but this guy at the last minute decided to carry his kid to the other side of the track. The engine was seconds from coming around the curve and the father stumbles and the kid hits his head on the rails. Go figure. Don
colorado hirailer posted:Was this Amish, Mennonites, or Dunkards in PA., in the long dresses, but not near the Strasburg ,where they probably know what RR tracks are?
Likely Mennonites.
These senior pictures clients were absolutely horrible to my Railfan photographer friend and I when we took a picture of them in the act of violating the law.
It quickly turned into the scared victim with men taking their pictures and we were stopped not long after by the JeffCo Sheriff and “warned” for disturbing the peace. The Sheriff was also extremely rude to us about taking pictures of minors without consent as apparently the senior picture photog claimed we were “stalking” them and said we harassed them; I will admit to asking them to move from the scene because the “photo line” was back here.... Either way this civil argument went I have this nice iPhone shot of them taken from a public road, Gross Dam Road and with them on UPRR private property. We were chasing an eastbound BNSF Provo Lincoln manifest from East Portal and tried to warn them to get off the tracks and get out of our shot! They also ran from the train as you CANNOT hear it coming around that curve. If one of them tripped... death.
Crescent, Co June 29, 2017 7:06 pm
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superwarp1 posted:I'm guessing it's a requirement that if a engineer sees something like this they are reporting it to the dispatchers and if so are the dispatchers reporting it to the local authorities?
Gary:
It is my understanding the station owners and the Greencastle police have been provided a “copy” of the video. It is also my understanding a “copy” has been provided to Pennsylvania Operation Lifesaver.
The thing I personally found surprising was that Mennonite parents can be as clueless as so many others. Having grown up in central PA where there are large populations of both Mennonites and Amish; I guess I expected more.
Curt
Erik C Lindgren posted:These senior pictures clients were absolutely horrible to my Railfan photographer friend and I when we took a picture of them in the act of violating the law.
It quickly turned into the scared victim with men taking their pictures and we were stopped not long after by the JeffCo Sheriff and “warned” for disturbing the peace. The Sheriff was also extremely rude to us about taking pictures of minors without consent as apparently the senior picture photog claimed we were “stalking” them and said we harassed them; I will admit to asking them to move from the scene because the “photo line” was back here.... Either way this civil argument went I have this nice iPhone shot of them taken from a public road, Gross Dam Road and with them on UPRR private property. We were chasing an eastbound BNSF Provo Lincoln manifest from East Portal and tried to warn them to get off the tracks and get out of our shot! They also ran from the train as you CANNOT hear it coming around that curve. If one of them tripped... death.
Crescent, Co June 29, 2017 7:06 pm
Now that is in interesting story Erik. Trying to do the right thing and have it turned around so you become the bad guy(s). Did you even have a chance to speak with the police as to why you were concerned or did they (the Police) already have their minds made up that you were in the wrong?
Charlie
Erik C Lindgren posted:These senior pictures clients were absolutely horrible to my Railfan photographer friend and I when we took a picture of them in the act of violating the law.
It quickly turned into the scared victim with men taking their pictures and we were stopped not long after by the JeffCo Sheriff and “warned” for disturbing the peace. The Sheriff was also extremely rude to us about taking pictures of minors without consent as apparently the senior picture photog claimed we were “stalking” them and said we harassed them; I will admit to asking them to move from the scene because the “photo line” was back here.... Either way this civil argument went I have this nice iPhone shot of them taken from a public road, Gross Dam Road and with them on UPRR private property. We were chasing an eastbound BNSF Provo Lincoln manifest from East Portal and tried to warn them to get off the tracks and get out of our shot! They also ran from the train as you CANNOT hear it coming around that curve. If one of them tripped... death.
Crescent, Co June 29, 2017 7:06 pm
Sure, hang out in the grade around a curve, Darwin - your up.
Paul
Mennonites and not Amish?...Amish are known not to want photos taken of them, and around Strasburg/Lancaster there are lots, so l am wondering if local cops who reacted oddly in Eric's narrative, tunnel-visioned on that Amish desire, and missed the point, not realizing that as first responders, they could have been tasked to patrol that section of track with garbage bags, picking up body parts.
There's a growing Mennonites population here in Western Mass, so they are spreading out. There's different versions, different beliefs. I can't keep them all straight. But it doesn't matter what religion they are. Stupid is stupid
To me the worst part of the O.P. video comes at the end; to see the sheeple STILL MERRILY running on the tracks instead of safely running along off the side of the right of way....still havent learned?
Why bring religion into this -- their is other religions that where long dresses -- Jehovah witness also where long dresses -- religion has no bearing on the stupid people doing this.
wear.
Well, they managed to do it all:
- Taking portraits on the tracks
- Walking on the rail
- Walking on a bridge
- Going right back onto the tracks after a near-miss.
And this was with adult supervision! If ever there would be a case where a trespassing arrest would be warranted, this is it.
smd4 posted:wear.
???
Andre
laming posted:smd4 posted:wear.
???
Andre
He was responding to the post above his, from "MP BA232.7". Look at that post carefully.
Hot Water posted:laming posted:smd4 posted:wear.
???
Andre
He was responding to the post above his, from "MP BA232.7". Look at that post carefully.
Ha! Now I get it.
Silly me.
Andre
Number 90 posted:Well, they managed to do it all:
- Taking portraits on the tracks
- Walking on the rail
- Walking on a bridge
- Going right back onto the tracks after a near-miss.
And this was with adult supervision! If ever there would be a case where a trespassing arrest would be warranted, this is it.
And child endangerment.
I'm sure those kids will be remembering that throughout their lives! A lesson learned for sure.
Lenny the Lion posted:I'm sure those kids will be remembering that throughout their lives! A lesson learned for sure.
Just my opinion but, I seriously doubt that.
scale rail posted:We were filming the SP 2472 one morning a few years ago. They were doing a high speed run for the camera. Everyone was told to stay put but this guy at the last minute decided to carry his kid to the other side of the track. The engine was seconds from coming around the curve and the father stumbles and the kid hits his head on the rails. Go figure. Don
The boy is no toddler. I wonder why the father tried to carry him. He could have been seriously hurt, had his head hit the rail just the wrong way
When my kid was 12 or so, one of his classmates was playing on the tracks and got nailed by a train. Lost his right leg and right arm. My kid never played on the tracks because of that.
Had a neighbor that walked home drunk (he had no drivers license for obvious reasons) He attempted to climb over the cars that were sitting in his way. Just then the train moved, he lost his grip and fell off. He now has only one foot! Now he has to hop to the bar.
Hot Water posted:Lenny the Lion posted:I'm sure those kids will be remembering that throughout their lives! A lesson learned for sure.
Just my opinion but, I seriously doubt that.
Really? Well I wasn't going to say anything but here it goes. At 17 I had a very similar incident. I was railfanning, standing between the tracks(ok, I now know I shouldn't have) a, Erie Lackawanna freight train was coming right at me from around a curve. I had just just enough time to get off the tracks. By the time I got off the ballast and into the weeds, that train was already passing by me!
So no. Never been forgotten. At least for me......I'm pushing 60
One broken steel strap from a wood pallet would’ve decapitated the kid running along the tracks. Idiots.
Jon 
UPDATED INFORMATION.
Just read that charges have been filed against that family for trespassing and child endangerment. Hopefully charges will be filed against that photographer also.
One day I was watching trains safely near Chaney Jct in Houston TX. An EB SP train suddely came to a stop. I tought for a moment the trucks on each side of the couper seemed to, for a second, jump off then land back on the track. I thought I was seeing things. That night I ased a SP official about it. He said if the train went into emergency braking, that was possible....I was luckly the train teturned to the rails. Stay off, stay alive!
The scariest thing for me in the OP video was what looked liked two youths that go to the right of the freight train. I assume they figured they didn’t have time to hop the fence so they just glued themselves to it. It must have been scary as heck to be so close to a freight train going that fast. I bet those two learned a lesson. They are very lucky.
People just don't understand how fast trains are going and how little notice they will have if a train comes. It is worse with electric powered trains, but even with diesel prime movers the sound may simply not be there, but people might assume it is. Kids I can understand, as kids we occasionally put pennies on the tracks of what is now NJ transit, then DLW/Conrail, we didn't dawdle and on that stretch you could see the train a long way out, but even so (it is why the project safety programs are so important, kids need to know).
Just as an fyi (not that it is relevant to this situation), Mennonites and Amish are not the same people, though they are related historically and do share some similar beliefs. The Mennonites and the Amish have one thing in common, they don't have one unified belief system, The Amish tend to stay to the older ways, but not all do, and Mennonites range from being pretty old school with dress, modern conveniences, etc, others live more in the 'modern world'.
We had an "incident" here in the Chicago area recently at a NS crossing involving a Metra train. This is the former Wabash line from Chicago to Bement, Ill. which has Metra operating from downtown, out to Manhattan, Ill. Some "genius" stopped at an intersection where the tracks bisected the intersection. The gates came down, and while he was within the intersection, just past the gates, and safe had he stayed put, he decided to cross the tracks just seconds before the Metra train hit him. Of the 4 people in the car, one later died of their injuries, while the other three were hurt, and taken to the hospital. Had he stayed stopped, the train would have gone by, and they could have gone on their merry way! Now the NS is being sued for negligence since they didn't protect this idiot from his own stupidity!!!! Bet ya' he was on his cell phone too!!!
