Railroaders place to shoot the shit.

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Fallen Brother

Cy Valley · Upgraded Condition

Swiped from CSX-Sucks:

Name:
E-mail:
Employed as: Locomotive Engineer, for 10-20 years
Posted: 11 May 2009

A UTU member was fatally injured tonight on a one man remote control
assignment which was an East End puller in Selkirk, NY. I have been
advised he was ordered to change a knuckle by himself after requesting
assistance from the car department. The unofficial report is he twice
requested assistance from the car department as was ordered both times
by the trainmaster in charge he would be required to change the knuckle
without the assistance of the car department

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Train strikes worker

Comments 1 | Recommend 15

Police investigating fatality

May 10, 2009 - 8:06 PM

Bethlehem police are among the investigators looking into a work-related death in the railyard at CSX Transportation in Selkirk.

CBS 6 News reporter Craig Smith contacted three people employed by CSX. One of them, David Boehlke said the man who died was his brother. Smith was told by Georgia Boehlke the man who died was her step-son, Jerod Boehlke.

The other two employees told Smith they predicted something like this would happen and said they were of the opinion that Boehlke would be alive if more people had been on the job looking watching out for moving train cars.

As of this writing, CBS 6 News has no first-hand account of how the man died nor the circumstances surrounding the incident. We're told at least one report that came from the railyard indicated Boehlke was crushed between two cars around 6:45 p.m. Sunday.

At 8 p.m. Sunday Bethlehem police said a news release would be issued. CBS 6 News left a voice-mail message with the CSX after-hours media contact.

http://www.cbs6albany.com/news/train-1263206-preparing-information.html

Snippy · Force Majeure

Dead men tell no tales

"The last worker killed there, John A. Williams, 53, was crossing the tracks on an ATV when he collided with the New Jersey-bound train in Dec. 18, 2006. Authorities found Williams under the engine and pronounced him dead at the scene. He was driving along an access road from one part of the yard to another when the accident happened."

It was later determined he failed to stop for a stop sign in the yard. His death was ruled accidental.

Officials investigate rail death: Employee was hit by train at Selkirk yards crossing near midnight on Monday.
Publication: Times Union (Albany, NY)

Publication Date: 20-DEC-06

COPYRIGHT 2006 Times Union

Byline: Marc Parry

Dec. 20--BETHLEHEM -- Rail officials Tuesday were continuing to investigate the cause of an accident that claimed the life late Monday of a man working at the Selkirk rail yards. John A. Williams, a mechanic with 13 years of experience at the railroad, was riding an ATV on an access road in the yards when a New Jersey-bound freight train struck him at a crossing about midnight Monday. Williams worked in the mechanical department, which handles inspections and repairs. The 53-year-old Albany man was found under the engine, police said. He was pronounced dead at the scene early Tuesday. Scores of rescue personnel and equipment were sent to the accident scene in an area just off Bell Crossing Road.

Crossings at the yards don't have barriers to prevent people from crossing when a train passes, said Bob Sullivan, a spokesman for CSX Transportation, which owns the yards. CSX took over the property in 1999 as part of its acquisition of ConRail. Sullivan described the crossing where Williams died as "clearly marked," apparently with stop signs. Police and rail officials had no word on what caused the accident. "We are working closely with the Bethlehem police and with the Federal Railroad Administration to thoroughly investigate and make sure we understand what happened here," Sullivan said. "So, if there's a lesson to be learned, we learn it." No charges have been filed.

Copyright (c) 2006, Albany Times Union, N.Y.

Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Business

Snippy · Force Majeure

Man: Please Stop This Train

After train hits pickup, CSX worker radios for help, but it's too late, report says.

He dies moments later.

Friday, January 19, 2007

By Jim Read

CSX employee Ronald Foster backed a pickup onto a crossing in the DeWitt rail yard last month, unaware a train

was about to slam into his truck.

The train cars, being pushed by a locomotive operated by a radio control operator, shoved his pickup down the

track. Foster called over the radio for the train to be stopped.

The yardmaster radioed the operator to halt the train.

By the time the train stopped, Foster, 54, father of two daughters, was dead.

Those details emerged in a Federal Railroad Administration preliminary investigation report released Thursday.

Investigators revealed that the radio control operator was in a moving vehicle, not watching the train,

when it struck the pickup. The operator has not been identified.

The report included new nationwide guidelines, advising railroads to keep tracks under constant observation

when using remote-control locomotives to move cars.

New recommendations The Federal Railroad Administration report on the DeWitt fatality recommends that every

railroad should:

Keep tracks under constant observation when using remote-control locomotives to move cars around rail

yards.

Assess current rules for safety at rail crossings.

Review the safety rules with all employees.

Address the ability of employees to call for assistance through the use of common radio frequencies or

other means.

Look for ways to increase visibility of flat cars when they are the lead cars during a train movement.

That didn't happen in the Dec. 14 accident at the CSX freight yard in Manlius, according to a report. The accident

occurred in the town of Manlius at what is commonly known as the DeWitt rail yard.

Foster's truck was shoved about 444 feet, flipped onto its roof and then shoved another 490 feet, the

report said.

The cars came to rest 1,490 feet from where they started and 934 feet from where they struck Foster's

truck.

The radio control operator stopped the train when he noticed "a strange white light" at the leading edge of the

cars and heard a radio transmission to stop the cars.

Freddie Krueger · Unstable & Irrational

Trainmaster ordered him to change the knuckle with car department people there. The bastard didn't want the car department to lock out the track..............

Mistah · D.O.A.

that bastard should be charged with negligent homicide or something.....

Calvin · Upgraded Condition?

RIP Brother... you know what utu is going to say...

For its part, the UTU says some bumps in the road are to be expected - and corrected with union input. "We're going to expect bugs in the equipment, and the purpose of the pilot project is to identify the bugs, identify the limitations and work with the carrier to correct them," says Frank Wilner, a UTU spokesman. One of the most dangerous jobs in railroading is switching, particularly when a crew member must venture between cars. A miscommunication between the cab and the person on the ground -- whether via radio or hand signals -- can be deadly. Remote control eliminates this problem because the operator is on the ground and can see what's going on.

Mistah · D.O.A.

Article is updated:

Fellow employees say this accident could have been prevented. Jim Louis who is the general chairman for the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen says they're blaming company cutbacks for the accident. "More and more cutbacks. they call it modernization. We look at it as putting too many things on one individual. This is what can happen." says Louis.

Referring to decisions like cutbacks, CSX spokesperson Bob Sullivan says no action is ever taken without safety being the first and foremost priority. Other than that he says the company cannot comment on the investigation until it is completed but wishes to send their condolences to the family.

No-one knows how exactly the accident happened but union chairman Joe Louis says a remote control box strapped to Jared's chest may be the answer. "He might have hit one of those switches while having to perform another duty. Maybe the locomotive moved, not quite sure at this moment" says Louis.

Jared's father Bill Boehlke says Jared was one of his 11 sons. He himself has worked at the railyard for more than 30 years. He says it doesn't matter what the investigation finds because it won't bring Jared back.

Mistah · D.O.A.

Bob Sullivans statement translates into: We are trying to find fault in this employees actions on the day, so we can shift the blame to him rather than faulty RCO equipment or ignorant management.

Freddie Krueger · Unstable & Irrational

That sounds more likely, he was screwing around with the knuckle, when the switches on the friggin box was bumped against. I am going down to S. Philly to look at these boxes.

Mistah · D.O.A.

sorry bout the off topic but since we are talkin about boxes

In Russell yard, the snapper job ripped a car in half and derailed 12 cars. Management says the box/receiver lost communication therefor the engine continued to pull. ( what happened to going in emergency when there is no communication)
The reason according to Frula and company, the LED type lightbulbs used in lanterns are causing interference. New rule, LED bulbs are not to be used when operating RCO.

Sounds like some kind of Ripleys believe it or not shit dont it.......

Calvin · Upgraded Condition?

http://www.utu.org/WorkSite/detail_news.cfm?ArticleID=3072

The BLE claims that the two weeks of remote-control training given to United Transportation Union members is inadequate. And the BLE has filed suit against the Department of Transportation and Federal Railroad Administration, charging that the agencies failed to develop proper regulations covering the safe operation of remote control locomotives.

The BLE has a duty to try to protect its members' jobs. In doing so, it has raised numerous concerns about remote control. These claims need to be examined and put in proper perspective.

To back its claim that having non-engineers at the controls is unsafe, the BLE cites a handful of yard accidents involving remote-control switching since the pilot programs began in February.

In none of the instances was the remote control technology at fault, and no one has been injured, according to the FRA, the railroads, and remote control manufacturers. Instead, the incidents -- which ranged from minor collisions and derailments to running through mislined switches -- have been blamed on crew error.

The BLE says this only proves its contention that training is inadequate.

Training consists of a week of classroom study and equipment familiarization followed by a week of supervised live operation in the yard -- the same process used by Canadian National. Yet you don't hear about incidents involving new RCL operators on CN or Canadian Pacific, where remote control is accepted practice.

For its part, the UTU says some bumps in the road are to be expected - and corrected with union input. "We're going to expect bugs in the equipment, and the purpose of the pilot project is to identify the bugs, identify the limitations and work with the carrier to correct them," says Frank Wilner, a UTU spokesman. One of the most dangerous jobs in railroading is switching, particularly when a crew member must venture between cars. A miscommunication between the cab and the person on the ground -- whether via radio or hand signals -- can be deadly. Remote control eliminates this problem because the operator is on the ground and can see what's going on.

CN and CP have proven that remote control works, and works safely. Many in the engineer ranks remain skeptical about RCL. But you can't tour CN's MacMillan Yard outside Toronto, as I did this week, without walking away convinced about the merits of remote control.

The entire facility -- from the dual hump to the local hump and flat yard -- is run by remote control. Between 80 and 110 road trains arrive and depart CN's busiest yard daily with an engineer's hand on the throttle. But RCL handles the classification of about 3000 cars per day, as well as the building of outbound trains. And no accident has ever been attributed to a malfunctioning Beltpack. It's impressive.

And it's further evidence that, while the BLE has valid concerns about RCL's impact on its members, the union appears to be on the wrong side of the remote control safety issue. When a matter pits livelihood against lives, the pocketbook always must take a back seat.

Mistah · D.O.A.

RCL handles about 3000 cars per day? not on the Chicken Shit eXpress lol

Calvin · Upgraded Condition?

Freddie Krueger wrote:
That sounds more likely, he was screwing around with the knuckle, when the switches on the friggin box was bumped against. I am going down to S. Philly to look at these boxes.

If he gave himself 3 step, it would have taken more than bumping one switch....

-- Edited by Calvin on Monday 11th of May 2009 04:14:22 PM

Railroaders place to shoot the shit.

Train strikes worker

Police investigating fatality

This is the official end of my post.

This is the official end of my post.

This is the official end of my post.