Some of you may remember me posting a thread about the idiocy of sports fans a while back. Well, last night a baseball fan leaving the Mariners games became impatient and attempted to crawl though some rail cars just as they started to move. According to fellow employees involved in the incident, the man lost both of his feet. And once a train has severed a limb, you most likely ain't gettin' it back. What a waste.

[url=http://archives.seattletimes.nwsource.com/cgi-bin/texis.cgi/web/vortex/display?slug=dige25m&date=20020625&query=train]Man hurt as train runs over foot [/url]

When I was a kid, my father worked in railroad management and had to investigate trespassing incidents like this one.  The railroad furnished him with a Polaroid camera and unlimited film.  I grew up looking at lots of photos of body parts and dead bodies lying between the rails.  Sure teaches you to respect the train.

Boomer, you're an engineer aren't you?  I've done stints as a switchman/brakeman with the CNW and the SOO Line.
My niece just asked about crossing trains because there's some lines that run through town.  She was told under no circumstances is she to cross them.  Even working for the railroad it's against the rules to cross a train that isn't yours, and when you do cross one you use the catwalks.  Why do people want to crawl under the damn things all the time anyway?  Release the brakes/let the slack out and you'll never even know it's coming.

So is this the one legged guy that's always losing the ass kicking contests I've heard about?[:)]

Well come on!! So did the Mariners win or not? [}:D]

What this baseball fan could have said after the incident:

1.  "I've lost my footing.  Could someone give me a hand!?"

2.  "Good thing I stayed calm and didn't loose my head!"

[:D]

Chris, were did you work out of on the Soo Line, Bensenville?

He must be pretty short now since the accident- at least two feet shorter.  

Do you think the whole incident started with, "Here, hold my beer..."?

How do people get run over by trains?  They are big and you know exactly where they are going.  Up here about fifteen years ago we had a protester at the Naval Weapons Station protesting Nicaragua or El Salvador or some such and the guy gets his legs cut off because he refused to get out of the way of the train. Freakin idiot.  What was worse is that they tried to blame the engineer.  F-in morons.

It's a microcosm of the Liberal mindset.  The reality (RR is private property, you don't belong on it) and physics/logic of the situation never enters the mind.  Trains can't just stop, even at 5 or 10 mph, plus you can't stop the train every time it looked like someone was in the way, you would never get any work done.

And yes, I am betting there will be a lawsuit.  There always is.  Usually gets settled out of court to avoid the lengthy legal bullshit AFAIK.  I would like to see a company lawyer with some fucking balls to stand up and say F***you.

Chris, I usually work as a switchman but also hold seniority as a brakeman and conductor. This accident occured on a lead that we use for switching. It's about 2 blocks from Safeco field.

Macallan, I don't know who won. I didn't even know there was a game until I heard that someone had been hit.

Ratters, the type of work we do involves a lot of stopping and changing directions of movement. What likely happened is that the guy tried to crawl in between a couple of cars while the train was stopped, got knocked off/lost his grip when they suddenly began to move, and he fell down and got his feet caught under a wheel. Because he couldn't wait 5 or 10 minutes to get to his car or have parked it somewhere else in the first place, he will now be disabled for the rest of his life.

As far as a lawsuit, it depends. The BNSF has actually been defending and protecting itself pretty aggressively. Given the circumstances, I'll bet the fool gets squat.

Lawsuit math:
The guy lost a body part. He likely had a job where he stood or walked all day, so he is unemployable. He also will sue before a jury of his peers or worse--the people who feel bad for the little guy and know the deep pockets RR has money and insurance and won't miss it.
There is a 50% chance that the jury will award, and that award will be a million dollars (which for the poor and the low class is a lot of money, and easy to think of because it has a 'one' in it)
.50 * 1,000,000 is $500,000 payoff.
Defending this case will take about 1,000 hours pre trial, 500-1,000 at actual trial, and another 500 appeal. 2,000 * 200 (per hour bill) is 400,000. Let's say the law firm give a discount to the big RR client...down all the way to $150 per hour...still looking at $300,000.
If the RR (actually the RR's insurer) settles for $250,000 after only $50,000 in legal bills, it has saved itself one half million dollars.

EXACTLY.  And all because the dumb fucker was doing something he shouldn't have been doing in the first place, most likely knew better, and took the chance and did it anyway.  

I saw the video of that.  Wasn't the guy some old American who made a "career" out of doing such things.  Anyway, I remember the train pulling in and then everybody surrounding him after the accident.  He got what he asked for.

This is why you shouldn't try to get out of jury duty.

"Your honor, we the jury find the defendant not liable for any damages, and recommend the plaintiff should pay taxidermist fees to have his feet mounted on a 'No Tresspassing - RR Xing' sign at the location of the incident."

Yep. Not a bad outfit to work for.
You're right about the "liberal mindset".  People don't stop to think there may be conesquences to their actions.  They live in this little bubble and when they need to be paying attention, they loose.
Ever see that video of the last run of E units on the BN in the Chicago 'burbs?  A scoot is stopped at a station.  Gates are down and people are running across.  Of course there's a second track, but nobody considers that.  The rule says something to the effect of, "EXPECT MOVEMENT ON ANY TRACK IN ANY DIRECTION"  So some lady is running across and here comes another scoot on the other track and SMACK!  Looked like she saw it at the last instant but it was too late.  People just don't think.
I believe after that instance is when they made the rule against trains passing through stations where a passenger train is stopped.

Unbelievably, another switch job hit a car near this same location just last night. Actually, what occurred is that some baseball fans drove their car INTO THE SIDE OF A MOVING TRAIN while trying to park, got stuck, drug along and into 4 other cars. No reported injuries. No wonder I think sports fans are a bunch of buffoons.