6 dead in Metro-North accident (Rockland, Bergen: mall, road test, station)
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
She got out and inspected the gate lying on the rear of the car and then got back into the car. Gotta be stopped for that.
No, she wasn't. When she was stopped--when she first pulled into the ROW and the gate hit the back of her car, she was not on the tracks. When I say "she was never stopped on the tracks", I literally mean THE TRACKS. She was on the road, just before the actual tracks--tracks meaning the actual metal rails held together with ties that the train rides on. She was never on the tracks until the last couple of seconds when she drove her car forward onto the tracks and into the path of the oncoming train. Your post made it sound as if she was sitting on the tracks on which the train was approaching and that the engineer could see her up there half a mile/30 seconds before she got hit and just couldn't stop in time. It just wasn't that way. She pulled forward onto the actual tracks mere seconds before the train got there.
If she had stayed where she was when she stopped and got out of the car, she'd still be alive and so would everybody else.
Exactly, much better to take a little damage from the gates than the death & destruction of an all-out train / vehicle crash.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Mightyqueen801
No, she wasn't. When she was stopped--when she first pulled into the ROW and the gate hit the back of her car, she was not on the tracks. When I say "she was never stopped on the tracks", I literally mean THE TRACKS. She was on the road, just before the actual tracks--tracks meaning the actual metal rails held together with ties that the train rides on. She was never on the tracks until the last couple of seconds when she drove her car forward onto the tracks and into the path of the oncoming train. Your post made it sound as if she was sitting on the tracks on which the train was approaching and that the engineer could see her up there half a mile/30 seconds before she got hit and just couldn't stop in time. It just wasn't that way. She pulled forward onto the actual tracks mere seconds before the train got there.
If she had stayed where she was when she stopped and got out of the car, she'd still be alive and so would everybody else.
The worst part about this whole tragedy is that this woman's carelessness cased the death of other people and ruined their families along with hers. Once the dust settles the victim's families will sue the dead woman's family and will pretty much bankrupt them.
It would have so much easier if she was the only victim. It wouldn't have been such a big deal and people would have forgotten it already.
No, but my response was to someone who said she was NOT stopped on the tracks...and yet again: NO BELLS.
Sorry MQ, I don't buy your assertion that one can park a car inside a pair of crossing gates without being on the tracks.
I am not sure but looking at the pics her suv's front might have been over the tracks slightly but mostly it could be behind the tracks if she's hit by gate on the top - check pics two pages earlier. It's also possible that even front was behind the track depending on where gate hit the top.
No bells OK but what about flashing red - can't one see flashing red in early morning? This driver was really dumb and must be held responsible her actions no matter how one tries to play.
The green dots are where the barriers come down. The barrier had come down on the back of her car, so figure about 3/4ths of the car coming up from the bottom (she was going North). The train would not have clipped her if she stayed put
No, but my response was to someone who said she was NOT stopped on the tracks...and yet again: NO BELLS.
Sorry MQ, I don't buy your assertion that one can park a car inside a pair of crossing gates without being on the tracks.
Sure you can, and I see Blake Jones has provided an illustration. However, even if she was over the southbound tracks to any degree, she absolutely was not stopped on the track in front of the approaching train at any point, which your earlier post seemed to imply. She drove in front of that train only seconds before impact. The engineer threw on the emergency brake, and it took 30 seconds to come to a complete stop. That's very different from the engineer seeing someone on the tracks ahead from half a mile away and having 30 seconds to stop. That simply did not happen here. Think about it--if he had had those 30 seconds, she would have been clear of the track and up the road and out of sight by then.
I am not sure but looking at the pics her suv's front might have been over the tracks slightly but mostly it could be behind the tracks if she's hit by gate on the top - check pics two pages earlier. It's also possible that even front was behind the track depending on where gate hit the top.
No bells OK but what about flashing red - can't one see flashing red in early morning? This driver was really dumb and must be held responsible her actions no matter how one tries to play.
Just a correction--this happened in the evening, not early morning. But yes, red flashing lights are red flashing lights.
As something of a disaster junkie in general, over the years, I've been fascinated and horrified by these types of train-vehicle accidents. I was 14 when that Rockland County school bus accident occurred that someone else mentioned. I lived not far over the border in Bergen County, and I must have read everything I could find on it at the time.
Last edited by Mightyqueen801; 02-10-2015 at 10:38 AM..
Stupid people are everywhere, which is why we need less people on the road or let computers do the driving.
Everyday there's a tragic event because some idiot cuts off somebody and causes a crash, so we build bigger and bigger and bigger cars yet people still die.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.