My Train Wreck
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Stop me if I posted this before.
I was moving to Chicago from New York. My grandmother and I were on the New York Central "Pacemaker." This was an overnight train to Chicago, and we were in coach seats. Some time in the night, the train hit a rock slide, causing the locomotive to tip over into the Hudson River. The engineer was killed, and there were multiple injuries.
My only memory of it is a sudden, and violent, jerk forward. My grandmother, who was 58 at the time, was thrown into the seat in front of her, and she got a cut above her eye from something on that seat.
I don't remember how we ultimately got to Chicago, presumably the NYCRR did something to get us there.
US DOT report:
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If you've posted this before, I don't remember it.
A train wreck has got to be a scary thing...
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If you've posted this before, I don't remember it.
A train wreck has got to be a scary thing...
@jolly said in My Train Wreck:
A train wreck has got to be a scary thing...
A couple of years ago, we were stopped at SPUD (St. Paul Union Depot) for a while. It's a longer stop - refueling, crew change, etc.
On that particular day, they were adding some private cars to the end of the train for the trip to Chicago. It's a beautiful ride along the Mississippi river.
Mrs. George and I were in our sleeper bedroom, and when they coupled the private cars onto the rear of the train, it was quite a violent event. We were both thrown backward. I'm sure this was only about 5mph, or even slower, but it made me aware of how things like this can be dangerous.
In contrast, when we take the Empire Builder to Portland, the train is split into two sections in Spokane. The two lead locomotives and about 4 cars are detached and proceed to Seattle. A third locomotive is attached to the remaining cars and that section proceeds to Portland. It usually occurs in the middle of the night, about 1:30 AM. I've NEVER felt anything when that exchange occurs, and I've been there 8 times (4 westbound, 4 eastbound). You'd never know anything happened.
