More Darwin Award Winners

[Guilford Guy]

A movie crew was working on train tracks without permission from the railroad...

http://www.foxnews.com/us/2014/02/21/movie-crew-hit-by-train-wasnt-supposed-be-on-track-officials-say/

[GaryHinshaw]

http://www.connectsavannah.com/savannah/report-film-company-was-denied-access-to-track/Content?oid=2339838

[S Class]

Question: do American regulations (RR/Union/FRRA/etc) require a flagperson with dets and radio to any crews working near active lines?

[Virginia Atlantic]

Question: do American regulations (RR/Union/FRRA/etc) require a flagperson with dets and radio to any crews working near active lines?

Yes, generally.

[DKS]

Follow-up on this event: http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/envelope/cotown/la-et-ct-midnight-rider-lawsuit-20140521-story.html

[Philip H]

A good fiend of mine works in film and had worked with the young woman killed. He sides wih he location crew being misled. By whom remains to be seen.

[lock4244]

If nobody notified CSX, why are they dragged into the lawsuit? Negligent for operating within the scope of existing regulations on their own property?

Wtf? 

[C855B]

If nobody notified CSX, why are they dragged into the lawsuit? Negligent for operating within the scope of existing regulations on their own property?

Wtf? 

I would be astounded if they weren't named in the suit. Not that they necessarily did anything wrong other than not perfectly policing their property for trespassers.

You have to understand that U.S. liability suits typically go for every possible party, especially ones with deep pockets. Contributory liability is frequently determined by percentages, and even a small percentage of a deep pocket can still be a lot of money. Besides, CSX could possibly have more liability than meets the eye, and the suit is a means to force discovery of correspondence, e-mail, documentation - any records they might have to indicate prior knowledge of the circumstances and/or reinforce claims against other parties in the suit.

Besides, it's business as usual for RR legal departments - drunk redneck drives his pick'em-up truck around perfectly working gates and flashers, gets crushed by a train, RR gets sued. That's just the way it works.

[lock4244]

I would be astounded if they weren't named in the suit. Not that they necessarily did anything wrong other than not perfectly policing their property for trespassers.

You have to understand that U.S. liability suits typically go for every possible party, especially ones with deep pockets. Contributory liability is frequently determined by percentages, and even a small percentage of a deep pocket can still be a lot of money. Besides, CSX could possibly have more liability than meets the eye, and the suit is a means to force discovery of correspondence, e-mail, documentation - any records they might have to indicate prior knowledge of the circumstances and/or reinforce claims against other parties in the suit.

Besides, it's business as usual for RR legal departments - drunk redneck drives his pick'em-up truck around perfectly working gates and flashers, gets crushed by a train, RR gets sued. That's just the way it works.

Oh right. I have to stop forgetting that law and common sense, or the obvious, are pretty much the complete opposite of one another.

If a skydiver is killed when his chute fails to deploy, the aircraft manufacturer is negligent because they jumped out of their plane... also the owner of whatever land they struck. Probably Newton for describing gravity, too.

[peteski]

Oh right. I have to stop forgetting that law and common sense, or the obvious, are pretty much the complete opposite of one another.

If a skydiver is killed when his chute fails to deploy, the aircraft manufacturer is negligent because they jumped out of their plane... also the owner of whatever land they struck. Probably Newton for describing gravity, too.

Unfortunately the US laws are seriously messed up, people are getting dumber by the minute, and less willing to take responsibility for their action, and there is no glimmer of hope for possible improvement of this situation.

[Bob Bufkin]

The news networks don't help either. Last year a Darwin winner pulled in front olf a CSX train in Baltimore.  Clearly the truck drivers fault and now one of the local news agencies is trying to say it is CSX faykt,

http://www.wbaltv.com/news/new-evidence-challenges-fault-in-rosedale-train-derailment/26099610?absolute=true

[mu26aeh]

It's an epidemic.  I spotted (not my video) another freight train that didn't use it's flashing ditch lights 

[Ed Kapuscinski]

There's a pretty good description here:
http://www.rypn.org/forums/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=36273

[nsbob]

I saw several UP and BNSF locomotives being operated by NS crews in NS territory on a weekly basis when living in western Georgia.  I don't think they are equipped with flashing ditch lights because I never saw them used when signaling at crossings. 

[Bob Bufkin]

Even if they are turned off, they are suppose to work when they blow the horn.