UP and BNSF Wreck Brings Down Hyw Overpass in MO

[Deleted]

news.yahoo.com/two-freight-trains-collide-missouri-seven-injured-134659636.html

A UP train t-boned a BNSF train at a junction just outside of Caffee, Missouri. The resulting derailment caused the State Highway M overpass (which travels directly above the diamond) to collapse. There were two cars on the overpass at the time of the wreck. Seven people, two in the cars and five of the train crews were injured with life-threatening injuries per the Sheriff's Department.

[fr8kar]

Another source says the cars were not on the overpass at the time of the wreck. They came up on the damaged bridge and did not get stopped in time.

That said, this looks like it may be an authority violation by the crew of the train that failed to stop at the interlocking. I'm just glad nobody was killed.

[calzephyr]

May 25, 2013 13:44:07 GMT -8 @australianterrier said:

news.yahoo.com/two-freight-trains-collide-missouri-seven-injured-134659636.html

A UP train t-boned a BNSF train at a junction just outside of Caffee, Missouri. The resulting derailment caused the State Highway M overpass (which travels directly above the diamond) to collapse. There were two cars on the overpass at the time of the wreck. Seven people, two in the cars and five of the train crews were injured with life-threatening injuries per the Sheriff's Department.

It is a bad wreck for sure and the bridge coming down made it even worst. You have to wonder if they ran a red signal or did the signal malfunction. It could have been much worse if either train had tank cars.
Larry

[fr8kar]

I just looked at the River Sub. timetable and that UP interlocking is an Automatic with a release box. Since the interlocking was completely occupied by cars, it should have shunted the circuit causing the signals to display red and the approach/distant signals to be yellow on the opposing routes. I don't have access to the UP timetable so I don't know what the speed and type of operation is on that line, but it would at the very least be equipped with distant signals approaching the interlocking. The route looks to be very flat, so I doubt this was a case of the stopped train standing on sanded rail (which can sometimes fail to shunt the rail because the sand can act as an insulator).

Any train occupying one of the tracks approaching the interlocking should also shunt the block, which would throw red signals in the other three directions, so if the BNSF train was fouling the entire interlocking and each side of it, the signal system across three blocks would have to fail. I don't know how often signal failures occur, but personally I have seen plenty of crews get in trouble for failing to control their trains and I've never seen or heard of signal failures.

That said, I hate Automatic interlockings. I feel better knowing someone I can talk to and who must grant me authority is controlling those signals when I approach and pass by them.