Railroad Photographers Catch A Deadly Train Versus Car Accident

Another deadly decision that some kid made thinking he could outrun a train. The man is right-there needs to be gates. There is a railroad crossing in my county that is actually 3 rails that come together and cross and there is no gate. I think the only reason there has been no fatalities there in recent years is because it is so scary to approach in the first place.

Part of me suspects the kids were talking and laughing and listening to music that the drive may not have even seen the flashing lights. I don't know if we'll ever know. Sad no matter how you look at it.

...... Two people on the passenger side of the car were killed instantly, while the driver and another passenger were critically injured.

I'm surprised that there are any survivors at all.

I was surprised to. If you watch the video that catches the impact on camera, you can see why the two passenger side victims died. It's very sobering.

I can't possibly bring myself to watch.

Which brings up a whole other matter. Should we be watching death happen? It used to be (here in the UK) that we were not allowed to publish someone dead or being killed. Now it seems to not matter.

I don't wish to derail the topic and apologise but was just something that sprang to my mind when I read your topic

I will not be watching the video :(

I think that's a fair question, Abbie. I was asking myself the question of what would my former TV stations do with that video. Would they air it? Maybe teh media has changed since I worked last, which has only been three years ago. Maybe stopping the video the mili second before impact would be better. Some have said there is actually more video of the shot that shows the impact, but it has not been shown. The actual impact is disturbing.

It is shocking video. Some of my friends are saying it should be shown at high schools all across the country as what can happen.

the fact that the train was a bright yellow, ding bell and horn - didn't alert the driver? i deem this suicide. the train was right there. you can't help but see that train. and i also think those photographers were well too close to the tracks..

---Mike Savad
MikeSavad.com

i was always afraid of this one crossing when i went to work. no lights, bells, or gates. just a live track. and hope you heard the horn. it did stop the traffic lights, but it wasn't really enough. lately there have been too many train accidents. one guy was hit when he took a right on to the tracks and stayed there. not enough light on that area, and i guess stupid driver. another was a tractor trailer. i think there was a 3rd in our area.

---Mike Savad
MikeSavad.com

"critically injured"

The human body is amazing. You're tooling along at 30mph (forward) and within a split second you're going 50mph sideways. And survive.


Dan Turner
Dan Turner's Seven Keys to Selling Art Online

There's actually very little to see in the video. The car pulls in front of the train.... wham.... and the person who was holding the phone taking the video apparently jumps back or drops the camera, and you don't see any more.

Back in the day, I had to worry about drunk kids taking me out on the highway at night. Now, it's 24-hour texting and messaging. Next they'll all be wearing Apple watches and Google Glass.

Right now, it's now the first link on this page --

http://www.liveleak.com/browse?featured=1&page=2

You should also be able to search Google for "2 Killed, 2 Injured After Train Smashes Into Car in Kentucky." I'm still at this worthless computer that doesn't do video.

It looks as though the driver just wasn't paying attention. Maybe the music was loud, maybe he was texting, distracted by his passengers, who knows. Maybe he was distracted by the people filming next to the tracks. He may have realized too late that a train was on him. The reasons may come to light after evidence is studied. I agree with you, Joseph, that this video should be shown in high schools for new drivers.

Such a tragedy. All crossings should have gates! But when I first saw this, I was wondering why the photographers were standing so close to the tracks. Anything can happen, and did.

The video is still there, has slid down to page 2.

It isn't unusual to stand fairly close to the tracks. It is no different than walking down a sidewalk along a busy road.

I can't / won't watch it. To heartbreaking - these are someone's beloved children .

I personally don't believe we have the right to view the / a death.

The other side of me says that if this video scares the living crap out some people & saves a few lives - I am not against it being publically available.

When will they treat all train crossings as dangerous intersections, & who is responsible for not protecting the public.

Unfortunately even having gates is no guarantee that drivers will respect them. In the Valhalla, NY crash last month the gate came down on a car. Instead of taking evasive action (backing up, or racing forward - whatever it takes to get out of there) the driver exited her car to check if there was any damage, losing precious time. Then she pulls forward into the path of an oncoming train not only killing herself but killing six passengers on the train and injuring 15 others. By the way the gates are designed to break and if that were me I would rather break the gate and damage my car than risk death by train

http://www.lohud.com/story/news/local/westchester/2015/02/03/train-car-collide-valhalla-mass-casualties/22822737/

Janine: Who is 'they?' Drivers? The railroad? The Government?

Jim: That was really sad. I've read some articles about it. I have no idea why did that. I think the guy behind her said she had room to back up, but did not do so.

Yes, Gales... that is the question... the "they" - is all of the above.

We as a society seem to take for granted that they are just part of the driving landscape.
Unforgivable not to have gates, flashing lights & bells in operable condition.

Janine, are you saying that personal responsibility is not part of the equation? That others are responsible for protecting us from ourselves? Why do you think "they" responsible for people who choose to ignore the obvious?

Simply put, the existence of railroad crossings and lights should be enough to put anyone on warning that there is danger lurking. I've never had any trouble understanding that, the same as I've understood since I was very small that putting my hand in an open flame will cause pain and serious injury.

There are over 290,000 railroad crossings in the U.S. Put crossing gates, lights and bells at each of them is unrealistic.

And some municipalities are establishing 'quiet zones' and banning the sounding of the horn or bells. That doesn't make sense to me, but it is happening.

I almost got hit by a train with no crossing guard rails....didn't even hear it...lights weren't flashing and this thing was about 20 feet from me.... 2 years earlier an elderly man's wife was killed by a train there as he crossed the rails...sad...