Nepisiguit Runaway train 34 years later

[Music] being trapped on a runaway train can be a terrifying experience for anyone you could easily get killed or injured and often with how heavy trains can be once that runaway starts it's very hard to get it to stop i told you that you i told you something was dumped maybe we're on some express run or something wake up we just blew the caboose to hell without even slowing down something is going on here look look one such railroader by the name of wesley mcdonald had such an experience and it is one he will never forget on march 9 1987 60 year old engineer mcdonald was operating canadian national work extra 9548 on the nepa seguit subdivision he was going to perform a series of switching maneuvers at the brunswick mines where the train was to collect 23 cars the train consisted of two general motors diesel gp40-2ws numbered 9548 and 9457. these were canadian builds that were almost identical to the american electromotive division gp40-2s sporting the same build style and prime mover but with a wide cab instead of the emd standard cab to get the cars they needed from the yard at brunswick mines the train was required initially to withdraw a total of 31 cars from the yard but for the first move they would take 23 or so they thought engineer mcdonnell was alone of the cab of the lead engine and as instructed he coupled the engines with the cars and tracks b 226 b 225 and b 224 culminately in that order he was then required to initiate a reverse movement back from track 24 toward the yard limit at the beginning of his backward movement engineer mcdonnell could not be aware of how many cars he was pulling although it was usual to collect approximately 23 cars it is common ground that his view was obscured by covered gondola cars coupled to the engines as well as by the snow so he would have to rely on communications with trainman court via radio who would be an extra set of eyes for him court contacted him on the radio and advised that there were 23 cars in the movement and that the air was not coupled it is common that in switching cars from one track to another that a train may generally rely on the brakes of the locomotive as the cars being switched around are not being hooked up to the air brake system this was normal practice at brunswick mines at the time when the train is fully assembled the air hoses are then hooked up so all the cars have their own braking force and on they would go in their normal course therefore assuming a load of 23 cars mcdonald would not expected any need to couple the air brake system until he had completed assembly of his train unbeknownst to the engineer however and contrary to the impression he took from whatever train man court may have said he was in fact pulling 31 cars all heavily loaded with orb not 23. he pulled the train back on a downhill grade approximately 23 car lengths from the yard switch and then applied the full service application on his locomotive's independent brakes however to his horror the train did not slow down it instead accelerated at that point his two locomotives and a substantial number of cars were on a 1.19 percent downhill grade an engineer mcdonald realized he was quickly losing control of his train he then applied the emergency brakes but they had no effect either the train continued to accelerate down the hill the engineer was now the only crew member left aboard the train the others being in the caboose which was uncoupled on track 221 in the switching yards we there's a bunch of pairs back here at the moment and uh we can't hold him there she's waiting underneath here number 14. 14 left bathroom 818. okay that all right the train then flies down the grade reaching speeds of over 75 miles an hour the engineer leaves the cab of the lead engine toward the first car and desperately tries to apply the handbrake on the car which had no effect all he could do now was fall back to his second locomotive and just hold on and pray he also grabbed hold of the train horn valve blowing the horn at crossings and through towns warning people of his runaway train during the 20 minutes of the train's descent the dispatcher who stayed in radio contact with engineer mcdonald was able to warn other trains and work crews of the runaway the reason why i'm telling you that is that your trainers has a runaway train on the nether should stop but he can't get her stopped and headed for the [ __ ] gonna put 50 miles an hour he lost his air over okay we're by there now don't worry he then notified emergency services of the ensuing emergency and to prepare for the worst wesley is there no way that you can clear get get out of that train for the love of heaven's over all right hang it over well i think you better bail off into smaller bankers if you can do it at all right i don't know the engineer stays on the train instead it was clear if he was gonna go down with his train he'd go down fighting trying to see if there was any other way to slow or stop the runaway wesley are you alone in that engine [Music] that's the difference with it so he can get out of the main line if he can make it and whatever one you think is the best over no we never made this at you we're about two miles from there now getting the hell away on our way well get the hell out of the way then palmer as the train approached the junction of the newcastle subdivision the engineer sat on the floor of the cab of the second locomotive bracing himself for impact hello bathroom station [Music] oh i can i'm trying to get ahold of the driver he won't answer me now he was the only one on it i think [Music] [Music] okay [Music] [Music] the locomotives and all 31 cars left the track doing almost 70 miles an hour at mile post 0.34 on the nepa seguett subdivision the engines came to a rest on their side with the hoppers strewn all over the area some maintenance men working on the track bed near the derailment saw the train speed by and ran toward the wreck expecting mcdonald to be dead can you see how badly he was derailed over i was seeing this nice abundance yeah where are you at neil i'm living in a physique for an hour it's not looking very good here can you see the engines uh they look at the other side [Music] don't get back miraculously engineer mcdonald had survived the violent crash and he crawls out the second engine he was clearly shaken and suffering cuts and bruises but he was lucky to escape with his life fortunately no fire occurred in the engines despite the fuel tanks being punctured the cost of the derailment exceeded 1.2 million dollars now how could this happen [Music] as stated before it's common for switching maneuvers to not require the arrow hoses being hooked up especially at the mines also there was no way mcdonald would have known he was pulling 31 cars instead of the 23 since there'd be little difference in the acceleration of the train since the engines had more than enough power to move either number of cars at first the brakes were suspected to have failed however they were found to be in working order on the engines cn blamed the engineer since he took too many cars and did not hook up the air which was against a bulletin stating all trains switching at the mines must have the air hoses hooked up at all times however in an interview with the engineer he stated had he had known he was pulling 31 cars instead of 23 as he was told he would have never made the reverse move unless the air was hooked up despite this he was still found at fault by the company and was given a six-month suspension the other crew members also got similar punishment however loads of people did not approve of engineer mcdonald's suspension now here's where it gets interesting organizations such as the brotherhood of locomotive engineers argued the bulletin to have the air brakes hooked up on switching maneuvers at the mine at all times was only put in after the accident yet still on the same day it should also be noted that cn and the canadian transport committee were both aware of the practices but did not act upon them until after the accident plus them not enforcing it earlier to prevent such a runaway would actually make the company itself at fault they also argued the engineer had over 42 years of service with canadian national that he stayed on board the train trying everything he could to stop or slow the train until it hit the curve the engineer also blew his horn at crossings warning people of the oncoming train even bathhurst mayor douglas williamson opposed the suspension of the engineer stating how could cm be so crassus to suggest his guilt after he risks his life to stay with the locomotive until it derailed other factors include the brakes on the locomotives the locomotives in question were fitted with composition breaks instead of the traditional cast iron brake shoes which were known to be problematic also because the locomotives were a slightly older design they were not equipped with dynamic brakes had the locomotives been equipped with dynamic brakes they likely would have been able to hold on to that grade nine months later the engineer was finally cleared of any fault for the accident and also had his workers benefits and pension reinstated allowing him to peacefully retire not long after on november 1st 1988. he says he enjoyed the railroad and the company but just thinks the higher-ups are just not reasonable yes he made a mistake but the punishment didn't fit the crime he definitely felt like he was being used as a scapegoat as cn saw an increase in derailment around that time including the infamous head-on collision at hinton just one year earlier when a cn manifest with an incapacitated crew slammed head-on into a via rail pasture train that wreck landed cn in very hot water he's lucky to be alive but will never forget the most terrifying 20 minutes of his life on that runaway he has sadly since passed away in 1997. as for the locomotives both were pulled from the bank mint repaired and returned to service with cn 9548 would be sold to the yadkin valley railroad in north carolina sometime in 2004 until being sold again in 2009 to knoxville locomotive works today the engine is now part of the lancaster and chester railroad of south carolina 9457 was sold to railcar limited in 2005 until being sold again in 2011 to new england central re-numbered to 3015 and is still in service as of today brunswick mines would close in april of 2013 after suffering a series of economic ups and downs 34 years have passed since the incident and the memories of this harrowing experience will likely stay fresh in several people's minds forever [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] you

Channel: Thunderbolt 1000 Siren Productions

Views: 284,874

Rating: 4.9152884 out of 5

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Id: gk8Lix9l1Gs

Length: 17min 26sec (1046 seconds)

Published: Fri Mar 12 2021

Reddit Comments

[u/dewidubbs]

Rtc- yeah this trains lost its air and is only picking up speed.

A.sup- well when he stops tell him not to move it till we get there.

Rtc- yeah... I don't think it's gunna stop, and if it does it's going to be due to a derailment.

A.sup- well if that's the case make sure he doesn't move that power.

Rtc- I think he's gunna be dead man...

A.sup- okay, well if that's the case make sure he doesn't move, gunna need him to come in for a statement.

[u/captainoverchuck]

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