Teenager Hit by Train in MD

[Tygercat]

Very sad- someone else killed after trespassing on tracks

http://www.wbaltv.com/news/21269545/detail.html

The train in question was Amtrak, and may have been Acela (haven't checked the schedule), but at least this writer seems to think it was going all the way to Florida... :blink:

Other news sources:

http://www.abc2news.com/news/local/story/C...TqewiHAC3A.cspx

http://wjz.com/local/train.cecil.county.2.1241942.html

http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/maryland/...0,1046489.story

 

[MrEd]

The train I was on last week had to stop because kids were playing on the tracks, the conductor had to get out to run them off, just the horn didn't do the trick.

 

[amtrakwolverine]

the report says

The train, an Amtrak Acela, was traveling from New York to Florida. The incident occurred at 5:19 p.m.

since when did amtrak extend aclea all the way to Florida :huh:

 

[afigg]

The train was reportedly the southbound 2553 Acela which would match the schedule. The Acela would likely have been going 125 mph or more through that area. Obviously the Acela was going only as far as DC. Whatever happened to basic quick fact checking before posting a newspaper story?

Sad as the teenager was a 13 year old boy who with his friends must have thought it would be cool to cut across the railroad tracks. According to the article in the Delaware Online site, this occurred less than a week after a woman was hit by a Acela train in Delaware county, PA. See http://www.delawareonline.com/article/2009...kton++Md.++area. Not a good week for Acelas on the NEC.

The NEC is completely grade separated from WAS to just west of New London, CT and is fenced off for much of that. Are there additional steps that Amtrak can take - working with the states transportation departments - to discourage people from walking across the tracks? Plant barriers of a row of thorny bushes, change the landscaping so people have to climb uphill or walk through a ditch to get to the tracks. The problem with a chain-link fence is that kids will cut through it in no time.

 

[battalion51]

Amtrak is going far and beyond what they are required by law to do by putting up a fence. Much of the railroad in this country is unprotected and just wide open. Amtrak has put a fence in and numerous no trespassing signs, far more than is done pretty much anywhere in the country. No matter what you do people are always going to wander on to the tracks. What it comes down to is parents and teachers educating kids about the situation. Who we need to feel bad for are the Engineers and Conductors that have to deal with the emotional issues that arise after you strike a trespasser.

 

[Murjax]

The articles seem to indicate this happened in a residential neighborhood that straddles the tracks. The boys were probably playing in the Elk Neck State Forest on the other side. This is a case of parental negligence. Living that close to the tracks and probably seeing trains flying through town at at a heart-stopping 125 MPH daily should be a note to parents to teach their kids about rail safety.

 

[Amtrak839]

Amtrak has done all it should have to do to prevent people from being killed by its trains on the NEC - all that is left to do is let natural selection run its course.

 

[Guest]

sense when did amtrak extend aclea all the way to Florida :huh:

Doesn't make any sense to me either.

 

[DET63]

Whatever happened to basic quick fact checking before posting a newspaper story?

After the last election, where factual reporting took a back seat to political propaganda, fact-checking was shown to no longer be a serious matter with the press.

But I digress.

 

[DET63]

the report says

The train, an Amtrak Acela, was traveling from New York to Florida. The incident occurred at 5:19 p.m.

since when did amtrak extend aclea all the way to Florida :huh:

I sent an e-mail to WBAL, the TV station that posted the article:

Your article says: "The train, an Amtrak Acela, was traveling from New York to Florida. The incident occurred at 5:19 p.m."
The train may have been an Acela, but it wasn't traveling to Florida. Acelas are not used for long-distance services. They're electric, and only diesel trains go to Florida.

Please check your basic facts more carefully in the future.

My condolences to the family, the train crew, and even the passengers.

 

[DivMiler]

I sent an e-mail to WBAL, the TV station that posted the article:

Your article says: "The train, an Amtrak Acela, was traveling from New York to Florida. The incident occurred at 5:19 p.m."
The train may have been an Acela, but it wasn't traveling to Florida. Acelas are not used for long-distance services. They're electric, and only diesel trains go to Florida.

...

Good, but I think I wouldn't have bothered with the electric/diesel/long-distance stuff. That isn't important. Just say that Acelas travel between Boston and Washington and don't ever go to Florida.

 

[the_traveler]

I sent an e-mail to WBAL, the TV station that posted the article:

Your article says: "The train, an Amtrak Acela, was traveling from New York to Florida. The incident occurred at 5:19 p.m."
The train may have been an Acela, but it wasn't traveling to Florida. Acelas are not used for long-distance services. They're electric, and only diesel trains go to Florida.

...

Good, but I think I wouldn't have bothered with the electric/diesel/long-distance stuff. That isn't important. Just say that Acelas travel between Boston and Washington and don't ever go to Florida.

I agree. Most people will only care that an AE runs only between BOS to WAS, not that it's this or that.

 

[George Harris]

The train I was on last week had to stop because kids were playing on the tracks, the conductor had to get out to run them off, just the horn didn't do the trick.

Not a good move on his part. About 2 years ago, a conductor was severly injured by a gang when trying to do the same ust west of Sacramento CA.

 

[MrEd]

The train I was on last week had to stop because kids were playing on the tracks, the conductor had to get out to run them off, just the horn didn't do the trick.

Not a good move on his part. About 2 years ago, a conductor was severly injured by a gang when trying to do the same ust west of Sacramento CA.

This week the train did not stop and one person was killed on monday. Sorry to hear about the conductor taking a beating out in CA.

An Amtrak express train bound for Pennsylvania Station struck and killed a 71-year-old Peekskill man early Monday evening, delaying rush-hour trains in both directions.

...

"Maybe the guy thought he could beat the train," Peekskill Fire Chief John Pappas said. "They go through here pretty fast. That's not a fight you're going to win. When I see the gates go down, I stay put."

http://www.lohud.com/article/2009910130343

 

[amtrakwolverine]

The train I was on last week had to stop because kids were playing on the tracks, the conductor had to get out to run them off, just the horn didn't do the trick.

Not a good move on his part. About 2 years ago, a conductor was severly injured by a gang when trying to do the same ust west of Sacramento CA.

and then the kids tried to claim self defense in court.

 

[tp49]

The train I was on last week had to stop because kids were playing on the tracks, the conductor had to get out to run them off, just the horn didn't do the trick.

Not a good move on his part. About 2 years ago, a conductor was severly injured by a gang when trying to do the same ust west of Sacramento CA.

and then the kids tried to claim self defense in court.

They had to try something even if it was far fetched...

 

[Amtrak839]

The train I was on last week had to stop because kids were playing on the tracks, the conductor had to get out to run them off, just the horn didn't do the trick.

Not a good move on his part. About 2 years ago, a conductor was severly injured by a gang when trying to do the same ust west of Sacramento CA.

and then the kids tried to claim self defense in court.

Well, the conductor did try to run them over with his train!

 

[George Harris]

The train I was on last week had to stop because kids were playing on the tracks, the conductor had to get out to run them off, just the horn didn't do the trick.

Not a good move on his part. About 2 years ago, a conductor was severly injured by a gang when trying to do the same ust west of Sacramento CA.

and then the kids tried to claim self defense in court.

Well, the conductor did try to run them over with his train!

Not true, and given the results of the encounter, not the least bit funny.

 

[Amtrak839]

Not true, and given the results of the encounter, not the least bit funny.

I am well aware it's not true. It was sarcasm - I was trying to mock these idiots, I don't see how they can claim self defense in this situation. I apologize if I offended anyone.

 

[DET63]

Not true, and given the results of the encounter, not the least bit funny.

I am well aware it's not true. It was sarcasm - I was trying to mock these idiots, I don't see how they can claim self defense in this situation. I apologize if I offended anyone.

Amtrak839 has spent too much time in the minds of trial lawyers.

 

[rrdude]

Not true, and given the results of the encounter, not the least bit funny.

I am well aware it's not true. It was sarcasm - I was trying to mock these idiots, I don't see how they can claim self defense in this situation. I apologize if I offended anyone.

Amtrak839 has spent too much time in the minds of trail lawyers.

And I sure as hell hope that the "posting police" don't require all AU posters to be "politically correct". (God I hate that phrase) We are all entitled to our opinions and beliefs, no matter how wacky or far-out they are. If they offend one, or a few, so be it. If it offends virtually everyone, OFF WITH YOUR HEAD!

If a poster wants to make a joke (in poor taste or not) then of course they are entitled. EVERY ONE of us knows that when a child, or an adult, or (what seems to garner the most media attention) a pregnant mother, is hit or killed by a train, or "an Amtrak" , the media often gets it wrong (blames the train) and sensationalizes it. (even if the gene-pool was further cleansed.......)

Hey, I bet EVERY ONE of us played on the tracks at some point in our childhood. Some of learned faster than others. Some of us are still learning. SOME of us will never learn. (Gimmie a baggage car with an open door in the mountains ANY day.......) :lol:

"But officer, the train should have KNOWN I wasn't gonna get out of the way............"