RAILROAD CROSSING SAFETY - Sheriff Officer Hit - could have been any of us.

[Stevenony]

A Midland County (Texas) Sheriffs Deputy was struck by a train while responding to a "baby not breathing" emergency and surprisingly "walked away from" the wreckage.

Railroad grade crossings are DANGEROUS ! ! !

This incident was caught on camera and should be a valuable lesson to all of us no matter what kind of vehicle we are operating.

https://www.myfoxzone.com/article/n...icle/513-34b55b79-d0eb-4373-aa14-57825847f03f

It was in this same general area several years ago that a parade float carrying wounded veterans was hit by a train with horrific injuries and tragic deaths resulting. That story also made national news.



Side note:
Our XM818 Semi Tractor came out of a Midland County Sheriffs Office auction.

I've been working for the big orange railroad for going on 20 years. Kids and dogs bust me up the most, I figure "most" adults can watch out for themselves. People don't think about the damage trains can do and we can't swerve to miss em. We can do up to 70 across the desert and we don't look like it until it's too late. Stay safe.

 

[WILDBOY6X6]

I've been working for the big orange railroad for going on 20 years. Kids and dogs bust me up the most, I figure "most" adults can watch out for themselves. People don't think about the damage trains can do and we can't swerve to miss em. We can do up to 70 across the desert and we don't look like it until it's too late. Stay safe.

There's no valid reason to get hit it acrossing this guy's an even bigger dipstick than private people are, I run locomotives not on a railroad just at museums but they'll kill you just as quick. I don't care if you are an emergency vehicle you should still stop and look at a grade crossing, no different than you are required to do before running a red light I'll save my Darwin award for later

 

[Valor]

I worked for the yellow one but in the yard. Still can get killed very easliy if you aren't paying attention. Sadly it happens too often.

 

[John S-B]

I've been working for the big orange railroad for going on 20 years. Kids and dogs bust me up the most, I figure "most" adults can watch out for themselves. People don't think about the damage trains can do and we can't swerve to miss em. We can do up to 70 across the desert and we don't look like it until it's too late. Stay safe.

99% of the "Baby not breathing" runs I've been on were new parents that panicked, and the baby was fine. The very few that weren't were SIDS, Sudden Infant Death Syndrome, and nothing could be done. People get tunnel vision, and don't pay attention because it's a baby. Emergency runs involving kids always gets emotions high.

 

[Another Ahab]

99% of the "Baby not breathing" runs I've been on were new parents that panicked, and the baby was fine. The very few that weren't were SIDS, Sudden Infant Death Syndrome, and nothing could be done. People get tunnel vision, and don't pay attention because it's a baby. Emergency runs involving kids always gets emotions high.

Just reading something the other day about "calm", and how it was described as a superpower.

Emotions tangle up thinking. But emotion is a hard thing to tame in us peoples.

Taking railroad crossings seriously is always good sense, plain and simple.

Here's the clip:

 

[Guyfang]

Here is two more for you.

Stress, is when someone is trying to kill you. Everything else is B.S.

Fear is good. It keeps one from doing stupid stuff. Panic, will kill you. Panic makes you stop thinking.

SSG R. Snipe. 1973. Ft. Ord Ca.

 

[John S-B]

Here is two more for you.

Stress, is when someone is trying to kill you. Everything else is B.S.

Fear is good. It keeps one from doing stupid stuff. Panic, will kill you. Panic makes you stop thinking.

SSG R. Snipe. 1973. Ft. Ord Ca.

I always heard that the definition of stress is "Controlling the strong urge to choke the life out of someone who desperately deserves it"...

 

[ODAddict]

Reading through this old thread brought a memory to mind....which I humbly submit for consideration as winner in the foolish idiot department--though I plead youthful ignorance as an insanity defense, I was of driving age and certainly old enough to know better.

Did you know that an M37 will fit neatly on standard US tracks? By testing and experimentation, I discovered that if the tires are a bit deflated, one can take his hands off the wheel, and the truck will track just fine. I wonder to this day if the truck width is purpose-built or merely a coincidence.

It was near Malvern, Arkansas in 1973 at the Etta crossing. Fortunately, even though it was a busy line, I did not encounter a train. After traveling only about a quarter mile, I chickened out and never tried it again. Afterwards, I wondered what I would have done if I had seen the far away light from a train engine. If I had not been at a crossing, it could have been a problem attempting to cross the rails sideways/parallel and then what? Crash down the embankment? Rollover? Sideswipe collision?

And, no, I never told Mom.

 

[Guyfang]

Like the movie "The Flim Flam Man" With George C. Scott.

 

[Another Ahab]

Reading through this old thread brought a memory to mind....which I humbly submit for consideration as winner in the foolish idiot department--though I plead youthful ignorance as an insanity defense, I was of driving age and certainly old enough to know better.

Did you know that an M37 will fit neatly on standard US tracks?

And, no, I never told Mom.

Happy ending, so a great story, ODAddict,!

Because that adventure could have gone SO wrong.

Wonder if we all earn points in Heaven for the things we decided not to tell Mom?

 

[M813rc]

........By testing and experimentation......

In youth, the ability to devise and implement experiments frequently surges ahead of the ability to objectively evaluate all of the possible outcomes and consequences. I am frequently surprised that my friends and I survived our teen years, and I see I am in good company!


Unknown if it was by design or by fortuitousness on wheel spacing of the M37, but I have seen photographs of them with train wheels being used as rail yard shunters.
Having a branch of the UP nearby, I frequently see the modern equivalent - Union Pacific pickups with drop-down rail guides front and rear, driving on the tracks powered by their tires. They do have narrower than normal track, as the rail gauge is slightly narrower than a modern full-sized pickup. Of course, they are supposed to be there, and know exactly when and where to expect the next train!

Cheers