Collegedale Tenn NS derailment, concrete bridge girder vs train

[mu26aeh]

A NS freight train has struck a truck carrying a concrete bridge girder in Collegedale, Tennessee

https://newschannel9.com/news/local/several-train-cars-derail-in-collegedale-tuesday-afternoon

[Hawghead]

I don't think that was concrete.   Looked like a steel girder.  Hope the crew is OK, looked bad.  Of course the news station made no mention of injuries because they're more interested in how long the road will be blocked.

Scott

[C855B]

Yes, it was pre-stressed concrete. It "bent" like it did due to the cable reinforcement, which is under tension when the concrete mixture is poured into the mold. You can see the cable in some of the shots where there is a "bite" out of the beam.

[nickelplate759]

That news site says minor injuries to both crew, none to truck driver.

[lock4244]

"Truck stopped on the tracks waiting for the light to turn green". Ironically enough the driver's so dense it's likely the light would never turn... since light can't escape him.

[peteski]

DO NOT STOP ON RAILROAD TRACK.  Think ahead.  Um, nevermind that is too much to ask.

The cluelessness of people out there never ceases to amaze me.  I'm telling you, his entire world is going to hell in a hand basket! And it is probably not going to get there because the person in charge of the hand basket will end up messing something up, and get us all stuck in limbo.

[John]

https://video.foxnews.com/v/6317595569112


Video of the event

[eric220]

Same video as above.

[John]

Same video as above.

What a mess Priscilla -- Oh No

[nkalanaga]

What I noticed in the video was that the train didn't seem to derail when it hit the girder.  It went for some distance pushing the bent girder like a giant snowplow, until it reach that small bridge, and the ends of the girder jammed.  If that bridge hadn't been there, I wonder how far the train would have gone, and how much trackside damage would have been done?

[Hawghead]

Yes, it was pre-stressed concrete. It "bent" like it did due to the cable reinforcement, which is under tension when the concrete mixture is poured into the mold. You can see the cable in some of the shots where there is a "bite" out of the beam.

Yeah, when I got a chance to watch the video closer I could see what you are talking about.  Thanks for the info though.

Scott

[jagged ben]

There's arcing and flames from the signal box at two different points in time where it gets hit.

[TrainCat2]

When I looked at the original footage from the news broadcast, I thought I saw the girder pushing the rail up into the air ahead of the loco which would have been the cause of derailment. Would be nice if we found that one to compare.

[TrainCat2]

Look at 9 sec and watch the rail.

[Ed Kapuscinski]

Ya know, people complain about widecabs, but in this case it almost certainly saved the crew's lives.