UPDATE: On January 3, 2025, the Delray Beach Fire Rescue Chief announced an Assistant Chief, Division Chief, Captain and Driver Engineer had been placed on paid administrative leave pending the results of an internal administrative investigation examining if City and Fire Rescue policies and procedures were followed.
@@tomrogers9467 more than that. Totalled ladder truck, damaged rail equipment, likely lawsuits from the injured parties, accident cleanup, and investigation costs. They'll be lucky if insurance covers some of it.
@@tomrogers9467 they're not just sitting at home or going to the beach, they're just not working their normal duties during the investigation. Not paying them during the investigation could turn into some legal trouble if one or more of them are proven not at fault.
So what does putting those guys on paid administrative leave do? Now they get to sit at home and do nothing and get paid for it! ALSO… the only one to be admonished out of those is the FireChief himself, HE is ultimately responsible for everyone under his command.
Crossing arms were down, train had cleared one rail, and FD did not look to see if there was another train coming, which, for a 2 line rail section, is common to have a train passing another on the other line, as either a priority unit, or as a simple cross because they are running on the same line system in different directions, and they will need to pass at some point. FD will need a new engine, and they are very lucky that there were no deaths, though those 3 in hospital may never be able to work fire rescue ever again due to injury, getting a very early pension after being medically boarded.
@@SeanBZA can't even go based on looking with a fire truck-it takes too long to cross-not like a sports car that can zip across quick. trains come fast---too risky to try to cross unless you confirm there is a malfunction and no train coming at all.
As a firefighter/engineer on the West Coast we never go through the gates we will report delay by train. This will let our dispatch know to adjust the dispatch response and other units to change other ways to respond.
Exactly, I'm a retired firefighter engine driver/operator. Our guidelines are the same too, report that your unit will be delayed to its response due to a train passing, or stopped on the tracks. The ladder driver, and officer or acting officer have some serious explaining to due.
We cross in our department but it needs to be a Code 3 Expedite level call and we are required to stop when the gates are down and two firefighters from the back cab get out and walk up and check the tracks. Even then, if they see a train down the track, we wait.
Same, engineer on the east coast, we notify comms we are blocked by a train, and dispatch other units if needed. We wait, that's the safe thing too do. This actually happend to us recently, they dispatched our tower, we back tracked and went around ending up behind the tower, it was an 11 minute reroute but no incidents to report. Safety first.
@morningpride78 I disagree with waiting in some circumstances. We have forefighters in the back get out to check the tracks. Sometimes the gates malfunction amd why wait in an emergency if you don't have to?
The even more distasteful thing about this is that the fire truck came from the side of the track which the bright line train was on. Ergo, the other train in no way blocked the driver from simply looking down the track and seeing the train coming.
@@terry_willis The dash camera on the train has a very wide angle lens which will exaggerate the distance. I can't be certain, but the train was probably clearly visible to human eyes.
@@Dennis-vh8tzI drive fire trucks so I hope this helps. The only times the driver's view is blocked is when you're at an angled intersection where the left is further forward and the right is further back or if you enter an intersection somewhat diagonally from the right towards the left. Depending on the model of fire truck, where the side mirror is located, or if there's a computer screen/helmet/fire jacket on the dash, driving at an angle from the left towards the right can block SOME visibility, but not all. The person in the right front seat is the Officer of the truck and usually the highest ranking or most experienced person on the truck. In my department, the Officer will always say "clear right" or let the driver know if there are vehicles coming at an intersection whether responding to an emergency or not.
In Ca. a fireman was filmed in an intersection light, that he flashed a double peace sign, they were in the process of terminating him for taking his hands off the steering wheel.
Crossing gates go into failsafe down when the system detects any fault. It happens all the time. In that case it's a stop look and listen crossing, that is, you can drive around the gates. Trains in turn stop at that crossing before crossing it, once they detect a crossing fault at dispatch.
As a 20-year volunteer firefighter and chauffeur of my local engine company, I will say that this is 100% the aerial driver's fault. You do NOT cross the gates no matter what. I don't care if the whole city is burning, you stop until the gates go up. I wonder if the fire officer told the driver to go...if so, it's once again the driver's fault. He has the authority to do whatever he needs to in order to get the members to their destination safely. Period.
@ShhhHhhhz You're not wrong lol. They'll send ladders to medical calls all the time if they have advanced life support aboard. See it frequently where I am
It was SOP to always STOP for railroad crossings when I was a volunteer for Halifax FD near Daytona Beach in the 1980s. FEC trains then ran 50 MPH right through downtown Daytona Beach with horns blaring. They tried the first 'quiet zone' in Florida there for the overnight times 10pm-6am and it increased the collision frequency 200%. Quiet only lasted about 6 months.
Funny thing is that the mainstream media news I first heard about this on *actually* used proper verbiage. I forget what they exactly said, but it wasn't something like "train hits fire truck."
I once heard a reporter say about 2 decades ago. The conductor didn't have time to steer the train around the car that was stuck on the track. That was the day I stopped watching TV news.
That video clears things up considerably. That train was on the VISIBLE track totally viewable to the Ladder crew after the freight train had passed. First and foremost rule of driving and railroad crossings is to NEVER go around the crossing arms when they are down. "See TRACKS think TRAIN"! I shudder to think of the outcome had the train struck the cab of the truck instead of the rear. This is one reason I am of the opinion that there should be NO QUIET zones when it comes to railroads. I wanna hear that K5LA nice and LOUD. Prayers for all involved for their safety and speedy recovery.
There is no need to have a NO QUIET zone when you have crossing barriers. What there should be is a no stupid drivers zone. Every one of these crashes have been caused by stupid drivers. Often going around guards like in this video. There is already a physical barrier. How much further do we need to dumb this down?
@@jonesyokc I totally agree with you ... I was stating MY preference on the no quiet zones. How many times you come to a crossing gate down and no train? The horn IMO guarantee's the presence of the train. I'm just not a fan of no quiet zones.
another example of people not taking responsibility for their actions. this is a no brainer,train has right of way when signal is activated, when you dont follow the warnings (to protect you!) the train will win every time.
@@FDNY8231 I'm a fan of how we do this in Germany. The train never uses the horn when there are crossing barriers. (And the horn is much simpler than in the US.) And we certainly don't have more such accidents than in the US ... rather fewer, I'd think. You don't need louder trains. You need less stupid - or maybe better trained - drivers.
I figured the fire guy assumed that there was only the freight train triggering the gates, and when it cleared the crossing, he took off. But, seeing the map and seeing the straight track/clear visibility to his right, just one look and he would see the headlight. Therefore, I conclude that he didn't even look.
I think they have a copilot type situation. Driver looks straight ahead and drives and wingman has left and right traffic, He probaly never even looked. Just figured train clear and told driver go.
@@VideoServicesVB Yes. The majority of this is going to fall on the officer in the right-hand seat who would be responsible for checking for hazards coming from the right. Assuming that the driver actually got the clearance, and didn't just pull out once the freight train had passed. Even then, the officer would catch some grief for not yelling when the driver did something unsafe.
@@franbrindavisibility in most cabs isnt the greatest on a tower ladder and yes the officer will often check to be sure we are clear on that side but more for cars and blind spots than an absolute. Trusting them is one thing but it doesn't mean we don't turn our heads or know that we are responsible for managing an emergency response, not the officer. For the truck to have made it that far across they started moving well before the collision and I wouldn't be surprised if they couldn't see the train that might have been half a mile back when they made the choice to go. Its on the driver but they did not pull out in front of an easily visible train, at best they might have seen it at a point where it was too late and they could only hope to clear the tracks before impact. A tandem axle tower ladder isn't a sports car, its a heavy piece that doesn't do zero to sixty well unless dropped off a cliff. At 80 miles an hour that train is still over a quarter mile out at 15 seconds from impact, with another train going the other way that might have been visible but potentially not enough to realize in the moment that it was a second train coming. Now its on the driver without a doubt but I would be curious to know if any of the issues were something like not going back up in the normal time frame. If so then there could have been some level of complacency because of that and a pattern of driving around the gates. It doesn't excuse it but I can pretty confidently say that the driver wasn't likely to have disregarded the crossing on a whim and didn't drive out in front of a train bearing down at 80. It is clear what went wrong but there has to be something more that would cause such normally bad judgement to have been seen differently by the chauffeur.
This is a fantastic example and a somber reminder that trains have right of way over emergency vehicles responding to an emergency. First responders can’t do their job to help the people who need it if they get hurt themselves on their way to help. Trains always have right of way over all vehicles, even over emergency vehicles with their lights and sirens on, responding to an emergency.
What startled me was how quickly that train stopped after hitting the fire truck....a few hundred feet after the crossing a d said trainset stayed on the tracks.
Two good friends of mine barely averted an identical collision 40 years ago. Two tracks, gates down, train on track nearest them had just cleared the crossing but the gates remained down. My friends, first in line and in a hurry, went around the gates only to discover a train on the second track going the opposite direction just like here. They realized JUST in time to hit reverse and back up into the ditch next to the tracks. As they were stuck and needed a tow, plenty of time enabled the police to arrive and ticket them as well. They also got to walk to school for a week as the drivers father 'parked' the truck. This was the best possible outcome!! Will he ever go around those arms again? NO CHANCE!
The gates not blocking the entire crossing is intentional. They are designed to block the lane(s) of traffic approaching the crossing while leaving the lane(s) exiting the crossing open so that any vehicles already in the crossing can clear it.
@@FadkinsDiet-- While true, there are a number of videos here on UA-cam that show people panicking when they get stuck between the gates. They will stay on the track rather than drive through the second gate that is trapping them in.
@@FadkinsDiet Yes, the arms are designed to break away if hit. No, they are not designed to be hit and break away every time a train goes by. As I said, they are designed to leave the exit lanes open while blocking the entrance lanes.
I had very similar experience. I was the engineer, when I noticed an automobile racing toward the crossing gate, which was in the down position. I thought that it was going to run through the gate. It didn't. I mentioned to my conductor that, "they are going to go around the gate as soon as our train clears the crossing!" Sure enough, the driver went around the gate only to be hit by the freight train traveling in the opposite direction of our train.
did you see the cab camera when the lady was shielding her ear from the blaring horns and she did that same thing walking across the crossings. The vertical handhold hit her head and exploded into a cloud of mist. I responded to a few crossing accidents real learning experiences.
Years ago, outside of Orlando, Florida in a little place called Goldenrod, there was one railroad crossing on a two lane winding road. There were signs & lights, but no gate. The first time I crossed those tracks, I heard the very loud blast of a train horn & realized that I was dangerously close to an approaching train. I cleared the tracks in time, but had to pull over & sit for a little while. The lights were not working, apparently. The experience gave me a new appreciation for looking both ways before crossing railroad tracks even if the gates are up.
It amazes me how the media is always making the railroad out to be the issue. The view of the train was NOT obstructed had the fire truck driver looked to his right. The fire department is 100% at fault. And the freight train was a distant pass the crossing to where the crossing gates would've ascended by then. Prayers to the train crew.
Unfortunately Brightline will eventually get hammered anyways. Because of all the incidents, the statisticians will say the common denominator is Brightline and they will have to slow way down, or shut down.
This genius thought that him and his fire truck were special and could go around the gate after the freight train cleared it. He got educated to the contrary, and had it derailed the train, a LOT of the passengers could've been injured or killed. I can only hope he is summarily fired after he gets out of the hospital. I certainly wouldn't want someone that dumb driving a $300,000+ truck around in my department.
You've gotta change the phrasing - these people and vehicles aren't getting hit by the trains, they are intentionally crossing into the path of the trains resulting in a collision. Trains can't swerve, they can't brake suddenly, and they can't choose to take another route. It's entirely incumbent upon the drivers and pedestrians to obey marked crossings and to use basic common sense when crossing them.
"Unfortunately even if there's an emergency the train still has the right of way." You mean to tell me that a vehicle that weighs thousands of tons, is moving fast, and can't stop to literally save someone's life has the right of way? Who knew. Couldn't resist the sarcastic comment, interesting video.
I was a firefighter for 10 years in the Houston area. I was one of the first firefighters in Houston and the United States to take the first Advanced Passenger Train Emergency Response Class put on by TEEX and Texas A&M. The course was taught by fire instructors and safety personnel from Amtrak and several of the US class I railroads. Half of the students were Amtrak and freight railroad employees and the other half of the class were firefighters. With half the class being Amtrak and class I railroad employees we got to learn first hand from the railroad employees their experiences with crossing incidents and at the same time we got to teach the railroad employees about being firefighters. Amtrak donated a bunch of equipment to the TEEX Brayton Fire Training Field including three locomotives, one pulling the derailed train and the other two being on the burn field piped with diesel and LPG to simulate locomotive fires. One of our instructors was the Conductor from the Sunset Limited when it derailed in the swamp after a barge hit a bridge in the middle of the night and derailed the train where a lot of passengers died, he was still greatly affected by the accident 10 years after the fact. The class is 2 weeks long culminating with a disaster drill using the partially derailed Amtrak train with crisis actors, moulage and firetrucks. The drill went full course with the fire trucks responding emergency to the derailment and triaging all of the victims including extrication and firefighting. It was one of the best schools I had ever attended as a firefighter. We spent a LOT OF TIME on emergency response especially responding to calls where you have to cross active railroad crossings, I think ALL first responders and their vehicles should take a page out of the bus driver and HAZMAT driver handbook and STOP at all railroad crossings until you can visually affirm there is not a train coming, the program with busses and HAZMAT drivers has saved 1000's of lives and does not add that much time to emergency response times. It takes an average of four first responders to treat one injured first responder on a scene and you can see how that number grows exponentially... Here is a link to the images of the derailed train at the fire field and a link to the course info. teex.org/class/tng24p/ www.google.com/search?sca_esv=b8285594cefbc01d&sxsrf=ADLYWIIvS2me2OIJ0EsLTAb_TJEyciCakw:1735522058343&q=teex+passenger+train+emergency+response+calls&udm=2&fbs=AEQNm0Aa4sjWe7Rqy32pFwRj0UkWd8nbOJfsBGGB5IQQO6L3JyJJclJuzBPl12qJyPx7ESIf1S9KobXMZccIxNeT1A6IHPsOrb2ailWCtrbH230590Qqo_gr3WbK8_b8jln9piI4WsQXYzjWUxHnj2ThOaNp-6yTa8icx87qAZPKBvcGnuSdAwy48glHDioP4Tiz-OaaZCZJDfkWGm9ybQ0VBnye0yPhLw&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwi0_qW-q86KAxUI6ckDHW9cMdAQtKgLegQIFBAB&biw=1920&bih=911&dpr=1
As a retired train operator, I see what happened. Not good for the train driver, who can’t swerve. All he can do is horn and emergency brake. He will be off on workers comp for the next year. So, who has the right of way? Sorry Fire Department, your siren 🚨 and red lights don’t allow you to pass at grade crossings when the gates, lights, and bells are operating.
It's pretty easy to not get hit by a train. They don't make sudden turns. If you're not sure where they're headed, they've drawn two lines on the ground, so you know exactly where they're gonna go.😊
Wait until gates go up and lights go out. Though some states on crossings with flashing lights only, allow a driver to stop and proceed if the way is clear.
I’m pretty sure fire departments have standard operating procedures that prohibit driving around railroad tracks when the gates are down and flashing. Honestly, the driver of that truck should have known better.
They were responding to a call and they should not have proceeded. As a 38-yr fire service vet being a leadership/tactics & driver/operator instructor, as well as a liability mitigation specialist in emergency services, the officer and the ladder's operator should be DEEPLY and SEVERELY disciplined. Even in the event of this call being a structure fire where seconds absolutely do count, the train would have cleared the crossing in MORE than enough time in the response. Now they've totaled a 1.5-2 million dollar ladder truck, a train locomotive worth four times as the truck, taken three fire personnel off line, then all the injuries on the train.. NOT WORTH IT...
The people of South Florida are not typically the brightest. I live in Ft Lauderdale, and this was a local event. The Brightline has claimed several cars and trucks due to the same issue. People going around the gates.
How can we expect the general public to respect crossing safety when the Fire Department ignores them! The truck had clearly entered the opposing traffic lanes to dodge the gates. Brightline needs to sue the pants off the Fire Department and the city of Delray. This happened because of a willful action by their employees, but even more because of the city’s intentional disregard for rail safety. This city blocked crossing closings, forced a quiet zone despite proof of their danger, tried to block the entire Florida Railplan known as “All Aboard Florida” and continues to be soft on dangerous trespassing while continuously blaming the railroad. And if Brightline doesn’t want to make wave the FRA and NTSB should take the lead. Nothing is clearer of the communities position than an image of a government vehicle with their name slapped across it blocking a crossing! If serious changes aren’t finally made in this town, maybe the State should step in and drop concrete barriers across all the crossings within the city. If they can’t learn to cross properly, maybe they shouldn’t be allowed to cross at all. And for all those who think this is a road too far, just remember who was there first…
There are a few people in the comments, over complicating this. It's actually very simple....The fire truck had a red light and closed gates against him. He should not have crossed, under any circumstances.
This almost exact same scenario happened in NC, 3-17-2000, firefighter / operator was not wearing his seat belt, went around the crossing gates returning from an alarm, struck by a train, was ejected and killed by the truck he drove. DO NOT DRIVE AROUND CROSSING GATES. I drive fire engines for a living, and i do not go around crossing gates, no matter what kind of emergency it is.
The tax payers of Delray Beach better start preparing for tax increases...not only do they have to replace an expensive fire truck, but maybe a Brighline locomotive. I think I'd vote no on any emergency service levy they try to pass!! Not when they have fools working for the fire department.
Delray Beach local here know this crossing well, the crossing arms go fully across the roadway the smaller one you saw in the google street view is for the side walk pedestrian crossing. This area is filled with restaurants and Bars and is usually quite congested except for a Saturday morning at 10am. I heard a lot of sirens on my beach walk Saturday morning and wondered what was going on. Until retirement a few weeks ago I was a daily train commuter for many years but on Tri-rail that operates west of Brightline. In all my years I was on a train that hit a car once and a person another time. Never understand why people don’t respect the train it always wins!
It seems there has been a move away from this logic of "if you have to break the rules, please do so safely" to just "don't break the rules". I'm not sure if that's a good thing or a bad thing.
Some crossings in the Chicago area have light-up signs "!DANGER! ANOTHER TRAIN COMING" which activate when a 2nd (or sometimes a 3rd) train approaches the crossing.
To me one of the biggest issues is people just not being used to trains. I'm from there and I know there's trains everywhere in Chicago, so everybody is used to them. But when they've put new lines in L.A., FL and other places... people are not used to trains and have no clue... and they constantly do dumb stuff.
WHY are there even questions as to who's at fault? When, in modern history, did a friggin train NOT have the right of way? Also, even IF the fire truck had lights and sirens on (which it did NOT), or IF the gate arms were up (they were NOT - and EVERY driver should always look and listen, just in case) --> the train not only has the right of way, but also the bigger bumper. And circumventing the gates? Bad idea for civilians, criminal entitlement for authorities! That's like playing Russian roulette with a grenade
I am an operator trainer and do the accident investigation for the company I work for. From the video evidence the FD is at fault 100%. Remember. Trains can be on any track, in any direction, at any time. Do not run gates or signals. Look. Listen. Live.
I can see how this could happen, but it blows my mind that the Fire truck driver thought it was OK to cross when he had a red light and the gates are down! You have to wonder about the training they get for driving.
I live in Ft Lauderdale, and can tell you for a fact there was NO reason for this. The driver of the fire truck was impatient, and should NOT have proceeded at least until the gate began to go up. From my own timing of the process ( and this event is different since the gate was already down) . The gates get activated and take 15 seconds to lower into position. There is a 10 second period of calm, followed by the BrightLine train entering the level crossing and within 5 seconds it has cleared the crossing. Another 10 seconds, and the gates begin going up, taking another 15 seconds. All under 1 minute. So the crash, again caused by an impatient driver, had the very real potential to become a MCI with multiple fatalities. And the medical emergency they were going to was further delayed because they did not follow the most basic rules of the road. I just hope EVERY fire department training officer nationwide uses this video as a training exercise. Hell, not just fire, but every police department as well. The very same thing happened last year in Texas, a freight train was moving right to left across a street, and 2 police cars were on a call somewhere beyond the trackS, as in more than 1 ( which,as a local, they ought to have been cognizant of!) J ust the near train cleared the crossing, the 1st police car bolted around the gates and directly in front of the train that was going left to right across the crossing, which he couldn't see . ( But the reason the gates were still lowered) He survived ,but whatever call he thought was so important probably took the backseat in priority as his department flooded the crash site .
At this point, Brightline hitting something is like a person getting hit by lightning after they get told to come inside. It's not the train's fault, its the pedestrian's.
Brightline operates using the Florida East Coast (FEC) tracks. Before Brightline started running, these tracks went from single track to double track, and the signaling and gates were vastly improved. At many of the other FEC railroad crossings in Miami-Dade, Broward, and Palm Beach counties they have doubled the crossing gates. If this had been done for this crossing it would have fully blocked both the eastbound and westbound lanes crossing the tracks. Unfortunately these crossings in Delray Beach are not double-gated. The fire truck clearly broke the law by disregarding both the down gate and the signal lights being lit. 100% at fault. Stupid and sad. 👿
Never go passed a down gate they are there for your safety. If the gates are up still look both ways before crossing. Look both ways before crossing all railroad tracks.
Yes and no. An industrial spur that hasn't been used in 10 years because it doesn't have any more industry on it doesn't require looking in my book. If they were to use it, there would be a flag man and bells and whistles.
@@scottsmith2052 this is in fact why you see some crossings with a sign on them that says "EXEMPT", to inform school transports and hazmat drivers that they do not have to stop.
Glad this video exists. I think a lot of people don't really consider the safety reason the railroad crossing "X" sign also can have a sign that states 2 tracks or 3 tracks etc.
@@AroyalOfficalYT Ya no kidding what is your point? Its only the Drivers responsibility if he was aware of the Passenger Train. The driver wouldn't do it unless the officer told him its o.k.
@@AroyalOfficalYT True but as a fire engineer (term for the operator of a fire rig) you have your mind on the call you are responding to, you preplan in your mind what you are going to do, where to position your rig, what type of fire is it, one hell of a lot of questions. In this case the fireman is going to have to live with the error he made for a long time. While the railroad will probably sue the city for damages and liability. It is a no-win situation for all concerned. As a retired fire chief and ex railroader for the CB&Q I see both side s of the coin on this one.
My friend was killed in Fayetteville, NC when he went around the crossing gates. The ladder truck he was driving was dtuck in drivers side door by an Amtrak train, he was ejected and the ladeer truck rolled over on top of him. Dave never stood a chance.
Auto traffic better stop (like they're supposed to do now) obviously because the speeding trains can't!!! Trains ON THEIR TRACKS have the right of way. What's so difficult about remembering that??
You are right, Brightline operate at speeds up to 79 MPH, which is track speed along that section of track. Once Brightline heads along the east-west corridor Brightline can travel as fast as 125 MPH making it the second fastest passenger train after Amtrak Acela Express that reaches speeds of 150 MPH. Even FEC Freight trains reach speed of 70 to 75 MPH making it the fastest way to ship freight along the east coast of Florida from Miami to Jacksonville. There seem to be a lot of drivers who take their lives into their hands by driving around the crossing gates along the FEC tracks. What makes it so stupid is that it does not take that long for Brightline to pass, it is a short train traveling at very high speed.
This reminds me of the police car that got hit by a union pacific years ago with a similar incident,occurred on a 2 track main where multiple police cars were seen with lights on waiting for the slow train to pass,for context it was a autorack,as soon as the train cleared the first cop went over only to be struck by another train in the opposite direction,unfortunately the up auto completely blocked the veiw of the other train,still it was a dangerous maneuver,another clear reminder to look both ways before crossing especially if your veiw is blocked,I'm glad everyone is ok
My city is full of railroad everywhere... And school buses, gasoline truck end even fire truck always stop at the reils see right see left and then drive away... Is just common sense...✅
A crossing gate doesn't really block a crossing, you can easily go through, they're designed to break easily to not trap vehicles on the crossing. The reason for it not blocking the opposite lane is also to not trap vehicles who entered the crossing on a closing gate. No fault with this design at all
I took a Vo-Tech truck driver training course for six months. Among the many things I learned was that if approaching a railroad crossing and the red lights are still flashing one must never try to go across. There is a light rail crossing in downtown Minneapolis MN, where there is two tracks crossing the street. Can't tell you how many folks take off across with the lights still flashing.
While not legal it is usually safe to cross if the gates are starting to raise. It can become an issue when the gates then start to close for another train and traffic gets trapped on the rails. In that case the best thing to do is drive through the gate. It will break away as designed. Many people are scared to break the gate but then get their car destroyed by the train.
Don't like to fault our first responders, but this is squarely on the firefighter driving that truck. Gates were down. Train can 't come to a stop that quickly. Like it or not, EVERYONE MUST YIELD to a train in that situation.
If someone wants to give themselves the title of "professional" fireman they better act like a "professional". But sadly few actually want to live up to holding themselves accountable for their actions.
I used to drive ambulances near a train station. When the train would pull in the station if it didn't pull up all the way the gates would stay down. Impatient drivers would go around. Even with lights flashing I would NEVER EVER go around the gates
The FD driver saw the parked train on the other track and assumed the gate was down due to the stalled train. This happens sometimes. The FD driver should have known that there were TWO tracks at this intersection; one for the stalled/parked FEC freight train and another for the long distance Brightline passenger train. As we see, the firetruck DID NOT have its emergency lights on. They were probably just out for a casual, routine drive around town as they often do and weren't even responding to an emergency call. Unfortunately Delray taxpayers are looking at massive $$$ lawsuits from the 'injured' train passengers. I do feel for the FD driver responsible for a single mistake/indiscretion. BTW, I have lived in Delray for decades.
I’d like to know why the Fire truck driver couldn’t wait for the gates to go up? The gates going up is a sure indication all trains have cleared the crossing. Thanks for an excellent video.
Nobody in that fire truck even saw the train that hit them and if they did it was a very short glimpse before all Hell broke loose in the cab of that fire truck!! Yes they were extremely lucky that day...
@@chuxtuff But they should have seen it. The classic double-track accident is when the second train is on the far tracks so that the vehicle that tries to cross and gets hit can't see it because the first train is blocking their view to the second train. But that wasn't the case in this incident. The second train, the Brightline, was on the near track, so if the driver of the fire engine had simply looked before crossing, he would have seen the other train coming since there was nothing blocking his line of sight.
@@Androctonus84 I agree with everything you said but I still don't think anyone on/in that truck saw that train. Look where he stopped. You had 5 humans with 10 eyeballs in the cab of that firetruck and not one of them saw that train in the distance? What were they looking at? Was the Brightline train sounding his whistle?? He should've been laying on it solidly as soon as it came into his view. Or was this another railroad "Quiet Zone" as per City Hall?? If that's the case Brightline ought to mention that if they can't sound their horns in the usual accustomed manner, IN THE NAME OF SAFETY & RISK BL will not be responsible for what might happen if the horns go silent. That's lunacy run amuk if that's what happens. Increased speed limits in an urban setting with no whistles aloud?? That's flirting with disaster if you ask me.
@@Androctonus84 Perhaps they saw the one pass and didn't think to look for a second train / thought they were in the clear. Probably some "Tunnel vision" at play. Should have waited for the gates to go up. Driver of the truck is 100% at fault. Glad everyone lived, but I imagine the driver might be looking for a new job after such a careless accident.
@@james1787 I'm sure that's probably correct, but it's still a really brain-dead mistake to make. Even on a single track there is sometimes another engine following the first train, and trains sometimes stop and back up, so if the gate is down you always need to check that it's safe first. Yes, thankfully it sounds like everyone is going to be okay.
The extra two barriers mentioned are much shorter than the ones for the roadway. They're designed to cover the pedestrian part of the crossing, which can be approached from the opposite direction than road traffic on the same side. Automatic crossings *usually* leave the offside of the road open so that drivers finding themselves on the crossing when it activates are always able to clear it without finding a barrier in front of them. Manually controlled crossings usually block both sides of the road, nearside first, and are monitored by the signalman; with this type, the signal is not cleared for the train until the crossing is both fully activated and shown to be clear of obstructions.
I live in the UK and I'm constantly surprised how difficult Americans find level crossings (RailRoad crossings). If you need to cross you have to wait until the exit is clear and you never ever ignore lights or barriers which almost every crossing has.
In Hillsboro, OR there was a crash between a light rail train and a a fire truck in 2005. The damage to the leading LRV was so bad it had to get an overhaul. The intersection where it happened did not have gates because it’s a street-running section of track. The traffic lights malfunctioned and the fire truck only noticed the train once it was too late.
Huh ... imagine, firefighters NOT following safety protocol! It doesn't matter how many crossings there are as long as the signals are working when the train is coming it is and will be 100% the fault of the vehicle driver in an accident.Apparently gates need to block the entire road on both sides because people are sooo stupid they will illegally drive around the gate because they are impatient. I have little if any empathy for stupidity.
Clearly the fire truck driver assumed the line was clear once the freight train had passed and didn't anticipate a train on the opposite track at the same time. Even professional drivers are guilty of trying their luck (and losing).
Local protocols require fire/ems vehicles to be stationed on both sides of the railroad tracks in case a train is blocking crossings when emergency calls occur. Example: Newton,KS, based on area and population, could easily operate with one fire station. However, because the BNSF railway cuts through the center of town, they maintain two fire stations, one on each side.
Well, that the truck crewed survived tells me that the train was going way under 80. It's TBD whether the driver was running well under 80 or he tripped "emergency." About 30 years ago near Bealeton, VA. The firetruck was operated by volunteers and all 5 men were killed. The crossing only had a sign and it's quite possible that the driver didn't realize the train was coming. As in the recent crash, it was a passenger train traveling at high speed. Most of the trains go much slower. The firetruck was literally broken into pieces.
I want to hear about the citations that were issued to the fire department! And shame on the city for trying to deflect the blame onto Brightline trains!! How despicable and unwarranted!
Did the firetruck even have his emergency lights on? Hard to make it out in the video, but, if the driver wasn’t even heading to a call this makes his actions even worse.
@@Sevenfeet0 I frequently haul trains thru Chicago, and I can't tell you how many times I had a near miss with CPD cruiser going around the gates with the cop only turning the lights on for that dumb maneuver, as if those will make me stop a heavy freight on a dime. And what's really galling is that those are the same cops who will write you a $500 dollar ticket for doing the same thing.
It is quite clear that the fire truck had crossed over to the other lane in order to go around the gates. I've been driving trains for over 20 years in the Chicago area and am astounded that despite fines of $500 and signs everywhere warning not to try to cross until the gates are all the way up, people still go around the gates frequently.
I’m retired from CSX people don’t care it seems me as a engineer 30 yrs they never will not knowing that their stupidity can wipe out a whole community if a derailment happens
The train was on the same side as the fire truck so how did the driver of the fire truck not see the train coming at them? i can see if the train was on the opposite side of the freight train was blocking the view, but either way, the driver of the fire truck should have waited until the crossing gates went up, made sure that they look both directions, on both tracks, and make sure no train was coming.
Another thing to consider .the gates and warning lights, bell only activate when their is movement on the rail. If a train stops close to the gate, the gates and warning turns off, until it sensors pick up movement. That was part of the misconception on the incident in 2000, That train was still, the operator thought the train stopped was tripping the sensor, however it was the other train that wasnt visible that was moving that was activating the sensor. Also its roughly 30 to 40 seconds from the time the gates start going down to the time the train reaches the crossing in most cases. Not only am I a career FF engineer, but also a railroad modeler and enthusiast. So I have a little knowledge on that subject as well.
Its unfortunate, but in today's world, common sense....or "sense" for that matter, is lacking. It's all over, including police and fire. They have legislation/programs/directives/whatever it's called, to hire unqualified people for positions, and it? will on get worse, in ALL career fields.
I worry about the train crew in accidents like this. If the engine strikes a car or some short vehicle it is not likely for the vehicle to rise up to the level of the crew cab. But, if the train strikes a truck or tall vehicle it is right at the level of the windshield and the crew has no where to go to get out of the way of anything coming through the windshield.
When I worked for the railroad in the '80s-'90s, there was a poster in the road master's office of a collision at a crossing that read "If it's a tie... You lose." 😁 🚂>🚒
when i was stationed in japan they always had direction indicators for trains to show which direction the train was travelling either left right or both.
@@Narpets2112 it doesn’t happen anywhere else in this country this often. The lack of common sense in Florida is absolutely ridiculous. Amtrak has been running trains at much higher speeds than Brightline for decades and the number of pedestrian deaths that were accidents (NOT Suicides) is a fraction of what’s happening in Florida. Grade crossing collisions can be counted on one hand in the last 20 years on the Northeast Corridor
Simple FACT... People in Florida just don't know what a train is!!! There have been more crossing accidents with Brightline in the short time they've been operating than the 50 years AMTRAK has been around.
@@FFred-us9tw If you're talking about Acela, I think most of that route is grade separated. Brightline wanted to do it on the cheap, with level crossings.
@ their are 11 Grade crossings on the Northeast Corridor that the Acela passes over daily. There has been 1 Grade crossing incident with an Acela in 25 years. Around 3 with Amtrak Regional trains. The last one had zero injuries. Again, trains aren’t the problem. The people in Florida are.
This reminds me of a major accident in Northern Virginia in the late 1990’s (?). A fully loaded fire tanker-truck was responding to a vehicle fire on a farm adjacent to the NorfolkSouthern main south of Manassas, VA…the tanker tried to beat the train across a private crossing and failed. The two junior firefighters were killed as Amtrak’s CRESCENT derailed at track-speed and the entire train hit the ground, with cars stacking on top of each other. Remarkably, no fatalities on the train.
They better have FIRED whoever the driver of that $500k (or Million $$$)fire truck and their chief!!! No questions asked, “You’re FIRED!” and here’s a bill for the million dollar piece of GOVERNMENT equipment YOU DAMAGED!!!! Have a nice day!!!
It doesn't really matter. If the warning devices are functioning, then it is entirely the fault of those that get hit for ignoring them. It's the law. People get hit at whistle crossings too.
I suspect that there is also a quiet zone here. The setup here with one train just having cleared the crossing is exactly why banning train horns is insane. If the train had been sounding its horn as it was approaching the crossing, the driver of the fire engine may have realized that the way was not clear. Safety should never take a back seat to mollifying a few loud complainers.
As an engineer you are instructed to blow the horn in quiet zones if warnings are needed My guess is that on this tape the horn just couldnt be heard from the camera
Few, if any, of these accidents are Brightline's fault. As a south Florida resident and Brightline customer, I actually feel for Brightline, as they're an excellent company that runs one of the best railroads in the country, yet they constantly deal with municipalities and a public that fights them on every decision, a freight partner in FEC that hasn't upgraded their own railroad crossings to completely block the roadways and governments banning train horns at crossings to give additional warnings of oncoming trains. I have heard from several people I know that sometimes the gates only come down with seconds to spare, and I believe the FRA requires at least 20 second intervals between the train reaching a crossing and lights/gates activating. It's a real problem and with South Florida's absurdly congested roads, we need Brightline (and Trirail) to succeed badly. Most of all, drivers, including this fire engine driver, need to be smarter at crossings. Don't ever stop on tracks, don't go around down gates, don't cross tracks until gates are going up.
If a fire fighter is that reckless and/or badly trained, something is seriously rotten in the state of Denmark, and a full investigation and re-education of ALL emergency personnel should be conducted. All emergency services employees should know in their bones that safety must always be the foremost concern on any emergency drive. Driving under lights and sirens is dangerous enough for both the emergency vehicles AND other travelers at the best of times, and you can't help people unless you get there safely.
![Lp. Сердце Вселенной #60 РОЖДЕНИЕ ЛОЛОЛОШКИ [Финал] • Майнкрафт](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/YoR0pAV9FVQ/mqdefault.jpg)
UPDATE: On January 3, 2025, the Delray Beach Fire Rescue Chief announced an Assistant Chief, Division Chief, Captain and Driver Engineer had been placed on paid administrative leave pending the results of an internal administrative investigation examining if City and Fire Rescue policies and procedures were followed.
Always on PAID leave. Having cost the taxpayers a million dollars in ruined equipment! Shameful!
@@tomrogers9467 more than that. Totalled ladder truck, damaged rail equipment, likely lawsuits from the injured parties, accident cleanup, and investigation costs. They'll be lucky if insurance covers some of it.
@@tomrogers9467 they're not just sitting at home or going to the beach, they're just not working their normal duties during the investigation. Not paying them during the investigation could turn into some legal trouble if one or more of them are proven not at fault.
So what does putting those guys on paid administrative leave do? Now they get to sit at home and do nothing and get paid for it! ALSO… the only one to be admonished out of those is the FireChief himself, HE is ultimately responsible for everyone under his command.
It’s the Fire Department’s fault, 100%. You’ve explained better than any news outlets. I hope everyone involved recovers from this horrible accident.
Crossing arms were down, train had cleared one rail, and FD did not look to see if there was another train coming, which, for a 2 line rail section, is common to have a train passing another on the other line, as either a priority unit, or as a simple cross because they are running on the same line system in different directions, and they will need to pass at some point. FD will need a new engine, and they are very lucky that there were no deaths, though those 3 in hospital may never be able to work fire rescue ever again due to injury, getting a very early pension after being medically boarded.
Tbh I think your right
@@SeanBZA can't even go based on looking with a fire truck-it takes too long to cross-not like a sports car that can zip across quick. trains come fast---too risky to try to cross unless you confirm there is a malfunction and no train coming at all.
@@SeanBZA Facts. Even during an emergency, you should *ALWAYS* wait for the train to pass.
It wasn't an "accident", it was reckless stupidity.
As a firefighter/engineer on the West Coast we never go through the gates we will report delay by train. This will let our dispatch know to adjust the dispatch response and other units to change other ways to respond.
Exactly, I'm a retired firefighter engine driver/operator. Our guidelines are the same too, report that your unit will be delayed to its response due to a train passing, or stopped on the tracks. The ladder driver, and officer or acting officer have some serious explaining to due.
Same.
We cross in our department but it needs to be a Code 3 Expedite level call and we are required to stop when the gates are down and two firefighters from the back cab get out and walk up and check the tracks. Even then, if they see a train down the track, we wait.
Same, engineer on the east coast, we notify comms we are blocked by a train, and dispatch other units if needed. We wait, that's the safe thing too do. This actually happend to us recently, they dispatched our tower, we back tracked and went around ending up behind the tower, it was an 11 minute reroute but no incidents to report. Safety first.
@morningpride78 I disagree with waiting in some circumstances. We have forefighters in the back get out to check the tracks. Sometimes the gates malfunction amd why wait in an emergency if you don't have to?
The even more distasteful thing about this is that the fire truck came from the side of the track which the bright line train was on. Ergo, the other train in no way blocked the driver from simply looking down the track and seeing the train coming.
The fire truck driver couldn't see the train - it was too far away from the truck when the truck crossed the track. Not justifying it, just saying it.
Yeah, or asking another crew on the truck to look to the right for him....
The driver's view might have been blocked by other firemen sitting to his right in the cab.
@@terry_willis The dash camera on the train has a very wide angle lens which will exaggerate the distance. I can't be certain, but the train was probably clearly visible to human eyes.
@@Dennis-vh8tzI drive fire trucks so I hope this helps. The only times the driver's view is blocked is when you're at an angled intersection where the left is further forward and the right is further back or if you enter an intersection somewhat diagonally from the right towards the left. Depending on the model of fire truck, where the side mirror is located, or if there's a computer screen/helmet/fire jacket on the dash, driving at an angle from the left towards the right can block SOME visibility, but not all. The person in the right front seat is the Officer of the truck and usually the highest ranking or most experienced person on the truck. In my department, the Officer will always say "clear right" or let the driver know if there are vehicles coming at an intersection whether responding to an emergency or not.
The headlines need to say "Fire Truck drove in front of a train."
The fire dept illegally crossed tracks for crying out loud. I hope people are getting fired.
Don't fire the firemen, they will never do that again and will teach others.
In Ca. a fireman was filmed in an intersection light, that he flashed a double peace sign, they were in the process of terminating him for taking his hands off the steering wheel.
@@Moondoggy1941
In Detroit a white new firefighter brought water melon to share for lunch.
He was fired
Crossing gates go into failsafe down when the system detects any fault. It happens all the time. In that case it's a stop look and listen crossing, that is, you can drive around the gates. Trains in turn stop at that crossing before crossing it, once they detect a crossing fault at dispatch.
@@yclept9 I would still wait until the the train approaches, but is there a way to know when the crossing has entered this "failsafe" mode?
As a 20-year volunteer firefighter and chauffeur of my local engine company, I will say that this is 100% the aerial driver's fault. You do NOT cross the gates no matter what. I don't care if the whole city is burning, you stop until the gates go up. I wonder if the fire officer told the driver to go...if so, it's once again the driver's fault. He has the authority to do whatever he needs to in order to get the members to their destination safely. Period.
In Florida? probably respond to some domestic dispute that has nothing to do with what the police can't handle
@ShhhHhhhz You're not wrong lol. They'll send ladders to medical calls all the time if they have advanced life support aboard. See it frequently where I am
@danc3488 Well said. Thanks.
It was SOP to always STOP for railroad crossings when I was a volunteer for Halifax FD near Daytona Beach in the 1980s. FEC trains then ran 50 MPH right through downtown Daytona Beach with horns blaring. They tried the first 'quiet zone' in Florida there for the overnight times 10pm-6am and it increased the collision frequency 200%. Quiet only lasted about 6 months.
Well, looks like somebody’s getting a brand new firetruck. Are we sure this was an accident?
The news always reports it like the train is at fault.
Funny thing is that the mainstream media news I first heard about this on *actually* used proper verbiage. I forget what they exactly said, but it wasn't something like "train hits fire truck."
@@RadioactiveSherbet I saw a local Florida channel that blamed the train. Why dont people trust us anymore?
@@RadioactiveSherbet Very unusal to NOT blame the train for these accidents.
Cars are freedom! Trains are socialism! So it has to be the fault of the train. 🤦 Stupid carbrain culture in so many countries.
I once heard a reporter say about 2 decades ago. The conductor didn't have time to steer the train around the car that was stuck on the track. That was the day I stopped watching TV news.
That video clears things up considerably. That train was on the VISIBLE track totally viewable to the Ladder crew after the freight train had passed. First and foremost rule of driving and railroad crossings is to NEVER go around the crossing arms when they are down. "See TRACKS think TRAIN"! I shudder to think of the outcome had the train struck the cab of the truck instead of the rear. This is one reason I am of the opinion that there should be NO QUIET zones when it comes to railroads. I wanna hear that K5LA nice and LOUD. Prayers for all involved for their safety and speedy recovery.
There is no need to have a NO QUIET zone when you have crossing barriers. What there should be is a no stupid drivers zone. Every one of these crashes have been caused by stupid drivers. Often going around guards like in this video. There is already a physical barrier. How much further do we need to dumb this down?
@@jonesyokc I totally agree with you ... I was stating MY preference on the no quiet zones. How many times you come to a crossing gate down and no train? The horn IMO guarantee's the presence of the train. I'm just not a fan of no quiet zones.
@@jonesyokc all the way down.
another example of people not taking responsibility for their actions. this is a no brainer,train has right of way when signal is activated, when you dont follow the warnings (to protect you!) the train will win every time.
@@FDNY8231 I'm a fan of how we do this in Germany. The train never uses the horn when there are crossing barriers. (And the horn is much simpler than in the US.) And we certainly don't have more such accidents than in the US ... rather fewer, I'd think.
You don't need louder trains. You need less stupid - or maybe better trained - drivers.
I figured the fire guy assumed that there was only the freight train triggering the gates, and when it cleared the crossing, he took off. But, seeing the map and seeing the straight track/clear visibility to his right, just one look and he would see the headlight. Therefore, I conclude that he didn't even look.
I think they have a copilot type situation. Driver looks straight ahead and drives and wingman has left and right traffic, He probaly never even looked. Just figured train clear and told driver go.
He probably depended on the officer riding in the right seat to tell him it was clear. That's the normal process. But,..........
@@VideoServicesVB Yes. The majority of this is going to fall on the officer in the right-hand seat who would be responsible for checking for hazards coming from the right. Assuming that the driver actually got the clearance, and didn't just pull out once the freight train had passed. Even then, the officer would catch some grief for not yelling when the driver did something unsafe.
@@franbrindavisibility in most cabs isnt the greatest on a tower ladder and yes the officer will often check to be sure we are clear on that side but more for cars and blind spots than an absolute. Trusting them is one thing but it doesn't mean we don't turn our heads or know that we are responsible for managing an emergency response, not the officer.
For the truck to have made it that far across they started moving well before the collision and I wouldn't be surprised if they couldn't see the train that might have been half a mile back when they made the choice to go. Its on the driver but they did not pull out in front of an easily visible train, at best they might have seen it at a point where it was too late and they could only hope to clear the tracks before impact. A tandem axle tower ladder isn't a sports car, its a heavy piece that doesn't do zero to sixty well unless dropped off a cliff. At 80 miles an hour that train is still over a quarter mile out at 15 seconds from impact, with another train going the other way that might have been visible but potentially not enough to realize in the moment that it was a second train coming.
Now its on the driver without a doubt but I would be curious to know if any of the issues were something like not going back up in the normal time frame. If so then there could have been some level of complacency because of that and a pattern of driving around the gates. It doesn't excuse it but I can pretty confidently say that the driver wasn't likely to have disregarded the crossing on a whim and didn't drive out in front of a train bearing down at 80. It is clear what went wrong but there has to be something more that would cause such normally bad judgement to have been seen differently by the chauffeur.
The gate was down, THE GATE WAS DOWN. Looking either way means nothing. Or, well, means they are idiots.
This is a fantastic example and a somber reminder that trains have right of way over emergency vehicles responding to an emergency. First responders can’t do their job to help the people who need it if they get hurt themselves on their way to help.
Trains always have right of way over all vehicles, even over emergency vehicles with their lights and sirens on, responding to an emergency.
Absolutely.
Trains cannot stop
Trains have Right of Way due to physics, not statute.
What startled me was how quickly that train stopped after hitting the fire truck....a few hundred feet after the crossing a d said trainset stayed on the tracks.
It does not matter if they have the right of way or not, they just cannot stop in the distance from when the driver saw the fire engine.
Two good friends of mine barely averted an identical collision 40 years ago. Two tracks, gates down, train on track nearest them had just cleared the crossing but the gates remained down. My friends, first in line and in a hurry, went around the gates only to discover a train on the second track going the opposite direction just like here. They realized JUST in time to hit reverse and back up into the ditch next to the tracks. As they were stuck and needed a tow, plenty of time enabled the police to arrive and ticket them as well. They also got to walk to school for a week as the drivers father 'parked' the truck. This was the best possible outcome!! Will he ever go around those arms again? NO CHANCE!
The gates not blocking the entire crossing is intentional.
They are designed to block the lane(s) of traffic approaching the crossing while leaving the lane(s) exiting the crossing open so that any vehicles already in the crossing can clear it.
You just smoked a big fatty didn't you?
Anyone in the crossing is supposed to exit. The gates are designed to break away and do not prevent anyon3 from exiting.
@@FadkinsDietCorrect. The shorter gate arms are to protect the sidewalk and keep pedestrians from crossing.
@@FadkinsDiet-- While true, there are a number of videos here on UA-cam that show people panicking when they get stuck between the gates. They will stay on the track rather than drive through the second gate that is trapping them in.
@@FadkinsDiet Yes, the arms are designed to break away if hit. No, they are not designed to be hit and break away every time a train goes by. As I said, they are designed to leave the exit lanes open while blocking the entrance lanes.
I had very similar experience.
I was the engineer, when I noticed an automobile racing toward the crossing gate, which was in the down position.
I thought that it was going to run through the gate. It didn't.
I mentioned to my conductor that, "they are going to go around the gate as soon as our train clears the crossing!"
Sure enough, the driver went around the gate only to be hit by the freight train traveling in the opposite direction of our train.
Stop, look and listen.
@@tedmossNeeds to be amended to include 'think.'
did you see the cab camera when the lady was shielding her ear from the blaring horns and she did that same thing walking across the crossings. The vertical handhold hit her head and exploded into a cloud of mist. I responded to a few crossing accidents real learning experiences.
Years ago, outside of Orlando, Florida in a little place called Goldenrod, there was one railroad crossing on a two lane winding road.
There were signs & lights, but no gate.
The first time I crossed those tracks, I heard the very loud blast of a train horn & realized that I was dangerously close to an approaching train.
I cleared the tracks in time, but had to pull over & sit for a little while.
The lights were not working, apparently.
The experience gave me a new appreciation for looking both ways before crossing railroad tracks even if the gates are up.
Inexcusable!
It amazes me how the media is always making the railroad out to be the issue. The view of the train was NOT obstructed had the fire truck driver looked to his right. The fire department is 100% at fault.
And the freight train was a distant pass the crossing to where the crossing gates would've ascended by then. Prayers to the train crew.
Unfortunately Brightline will eventually get hammered anyways. Because of all the incidents, the statisticians will say the common denominator is Brightline and they will have to slow way down, or shut down.
@@lancereagan3046 80 mph is not fast, cars go that fast all over and all the time.
@@tedmoss They don't go that fast across intersections, only controlled access highways.
The view of the train isn't relevant, IMO. Don't drive anywhere a train might be.
@@IanCraig-k6c Allowed track speed for Brightline is 79 mph in that area.
This genius thought that him and his fire truck were special and could go around the gate after the freight train cleared it. He got educated to the contrary, and had it derailed the train, a LOT of the passengers could've been injured or killed. I can only hope he is summarily fired after he gets out of the hospital. I certainly wouldn't want someone that dumb driving a $300,000+ truck around in my department.
That was NOT a $300,000 fire truck--double, no, triple that price at least.
no a tower ladder is around 1mil. plus and a delivery time of around 2 - 3 years.
2 Mil + on sale
Well over a million plus all of the train / track damage and hospital bills and lawsuits.
That truck is north of $1.2 million easy.
You've gotta change the phrasing - these people and vehicles aren't getting hit by the trains, they are intentionally crossing into the path of the trains resulting in a collision. Trains can't swerve, they can't brake suddenly, and they can't choose to take another route. It's entirely incumbent upon the drivers and pedestrians to obey marked crossings and to use basic common sense when crossing them.
"Unfortunately even if there's an emergency the train still has the right of way." You mean to tell me that a vehicle that weighs thousands of tons, is moving fast, and can't stop to literally save someone's life has the right of way? Who knew. Couldn't resist the sarcastic comment, interesting video.
I was a firefighter for 10 years in the Houston area. I was one of the first firefighters in Houston and the United States to take the first Advanced Passenger Train Emergency Response Class put on by TEEX and Texas A&M. The course was taught by fire instructors and safety personnel from Amtrak and several of the US class I railroads. Half of the students were Amtrak and freight railroad employees and the other half of the class were firefighters. With half the class being Amtrak and class I railroad employees we got to learn first hand from the railroad employees their experiences with crossing incidents and at the same time we got to teach the railroad employees about being firefighters. Amtrak donated a bunch of equipment to the TEEX Brayton Fire Training Field including three locomotives, one pulling the derailed train and the other two being on the burn field piped with diesel and LPG to simulate locomotive fires. One of our instructors was the Conductor from the Sunset Limited when it derailed in the swamp after a barge hit a bridge in the middle of the night and derailed the train where a lot of passengers died, he was still greatly affected by the accident 10 years after the fact. The class is 2 weeks long culminating with a disaster drill using the partially derailed Amtrak train with crisis actors, moulage and firetrucks. The drill went full course with the fire trucks responding emergency to the derailment and triaging all of the victims including extrication and firefighting. It was one of the best schools I had ever attended as a firefighter. We spent a LOT OF TIME on emergency response especially responding to calls where you have to cross active railroad crossings, I think ALL first responders and their vehicles should take a page out of the bus driver and HAZMAT driver handbook and STOP at all railroad crossings until you can visually affirm there is not a train coming, the program with busses and HAZMAT drivers has saved 1000's of lives and does not add that much time to emergency response times. It takes an average of four first responders to treat one injured first responder on a scene and you can see how that number grows exponentially...
Here is a link to the images of the derailed train at the fire field and a link to the course info.
teex.org/class/tng24p/
www.google.com/search?sca_esv=b8285594cefbc01d&sxsrf=ADLYWIIvS2me2OIJ0EsLTAb_TJEyciCakw:1735522058343&q=teex+passenger+train+emergency+response+calls&udm=2&fbs=AEQNm0Aa4sjWe7Rqy32pFwRj0UkWd8nbOJfsBGGB5IQQO6L3JyJJclJuzBPl12qJyPx7ESIf1S9KobXMZccIxNeT1A6IHPsOrb2ailWCtrbH230590Qqo_gr3WbK8_b8jln9piI4WsQXYzjWUxHnj2ThOaNp-6yTa8icx87qAZPKBvcGnuSdAwy48glHDioP4Tiz-OaaZCZJDfkWGm9ybQ0VBnye0yPhLw&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwi0_qW-q86KAxUI6ckDHW9cMdAQtKgLegQIFBAB&biw=1920&bih=911&dpr=1
Thank you.
As a retired train operator, I see what happened. Not good for the train driver, who can’t swerve. All he can do is horn and emergency brake. He will be off on workers comp for the next year.
So, who has the right of way? Sorry Fire Department, your siren 🚨 and red lights don’t allow you to pass at grade crossings when the gates, lights, and bells are operating.
It's pretty easy to not get hit by a train. They don't make sudden turns. If you're not sure where they're headed, they've drawn two lines on the ground, so you know exactly where they're gonna go.😊
Dang people just need to wait till the crossing gates go back up!
yeah, seems pretty simple.
Wait until gates go up and lights go out. Though some states on crossings with flashing lights only, allow a driver to stop and proceed if the way is clear.
I’m pretty sure fire departments have standard operating procedures that prohibit driving around railroad tracks when the gates are down and flashing. Honestly, the driver of that truck should have known better.
They were responding to a call and they should not have proceeded. As a 38-yr fire service vet being a leadership/tactics & driver/operator instructor, as well as a liability mitigation specialist in emergency services, the officer and the ladder's operator should be DEEPLY and SEVERELY disciplined. Even in the event of this call being a structure fire where seconds absolutely do count, the train would have cleared the crossing in MORE than enough time in the response. Now they've totaled a 1.5-2 million dollar ladder truck, a train locomotive worth four times as the truck, taken three fire personnel off line, then all the injuries on the train.. NOT WORTH IT...
The people of South Florida are not typically the brightest. I live in Ft Lauderdale, and this was a local event. The Brightline has claimed several cars and trucks due to the same issue. People going around the gates.
It's South Florida and the rest of the country.
It's everywhere. I remember one crossing where people seem to often drive their cars off the road and get stuck on the tracks.
You must be one of those people since you live in Fort Lauderdale.
@sunshinefl6586 I live here, I'm not from here.
I’ve heard alot of cases about it too. It’s honestly sad that people cannot wait for 2-3 minutes or even a minute for a train to go by.
How can we expect the general public to respect crossing safety when the Fire Department ignores them! The truck had clearly entered the opposing traffic lanes to dodge the gates. Brightline needs to sue the pants off the Fire Department and the city of Delray. This happened because of a willful action by their employees, but even more because of the city’s intentional disregard for rail safety. This city blocked crossing closings, forced a quiet zone despite proof of their danger, tried to block the entire Florida Railplan known as “All Aboard Florida” and continues to be soft on dangerous trespassing while continuously blaming the railroad. And if Brightline doesn’t want to make wave the FRA and NTSB should take the lead. Nothing is clearer of the communities position than an image of a government vehicle with their name slapped across it blocking a crossing! If serious changes aren’t finally made in this town, maybe the State should step in and drop concrete barriers across all the crossings within the city. If they can’t learn to cross properly, maybe they shouldn’t be allowed to cross at all. And for all those who think this is a road too far, just remember who was there first…
There are a few people in the comments, over complicating this. It's actually very simple....The fire truck had a red light and closed gates against him. He should not have crossed, under any circumstances.
From a locomotive engineer's perspective, the only thing worse than a collision like this is a collision involving a loaded school bus
Emergency responders can't help if they never arrive...
Nope…but I bet the second fire truck arrived to help out the crew of the first fire truck.😅
@@Slide164 There was no fire, so no, all they needed was the ambulance.
And that fire truck driver is completely at fault.
First responders beat the accident to the scene, what better service could you possibly ask for?
@tough for the train to get out of the way!
Siemens Charger, protector of crews. I am impressed. Stayed on the rails as well.
When I learned to drive, back in the 70s,
I was taught, that trains always have the right of way!
I guess some folks aren’t taught that these days!
This almost exact same scenario happened in NC, 3-17-2000, firefighter / operator was not wearing his seat belt, went around the crossing gates returning from an alarm, struck by a train, was ejected and killed by the truck he drove. DO NOT DRIVE AROUND CROSSING GATES. I drive fire engines for a living, and i do not go around crossing gates, no matter what kind of emergency it is.
You have an article about this? It’s only showing me the brightline incident
The tax payers of Delray Beach better start preparing for tax increases...not only do they have to replace an expensive fire truck, but maybe a Brighline locomotive. I think I'd vote no on any emergency service levy they try to pass!! Not when they have fools working for the fire department.
Delray Beach local here know this crossing well, the crossing arms go fully across the roadway the smaller one you saw in the google street view is for the side walk pedestrian crossing. This area is filled with restaurants and Bars and is usually quite congested except for a Saturday morning at 10am. I heard a lot of sirens on my beach walk Saturday morning and wondered what was going on. Until retirement a few weeks ago I was a daily train commuter for many years but on Tri-rail that operates west of Brightline. In all my years I was on a train that hit a car once and a person another time. Never understand why people don’t respect the train it always wins!
Even more puzzling is that the passenger train was not even hidden by the freight train.
The fireman thought the train would stop and pull over.
This is why older rail safety PSAs say "don't let a double track double-cross you"
It seems there has been a move away from this logic of "if you have to break the rules, please do so safely" to just "don't break the rules". I'm not sure if that's a good thing or a bad thing.
As a Fire Chief all I have to say is the fire apparatus was 100% at fault. In vehicle versus train incidents the train always comes out on top.
Some crossings in the Chicago area have light-up signs "!DANGER! ANOTHER TRAIN COMING" which activate when a 2nd (or sometimes a 3rd) train approaches the crossing.
To me one of the biggest issues is people just not being used to trains. I'm from there and I know there's trains everywhere in Chicago, so everybody is used to them. But when they've put new lines in L.A., FL and other places... people are not used to trains and have no clue... and they constantly do dumb stuff.
The city needs to install lighted signs that says, “ drivers, pull your heads out of your buts.”
some crossings on this line also have that, particularly at high-risk crossings, but this one does not
@@xray606 Chicago area engineer here. You should see how many people still go around the gates in the city.
If the gates are down , there may be a train coming.its that simple.
WHY are there even questions as to who's at fault?
When, in modern history, did a friggin train NOT have the right of way?
Also, even IF the fire truck had lights and sirens on (which it did NOT), or IF the gate arms were up (they were NOT - and EVERY driver should always look and listen, just in case) --> the train not only has the right of way, but also the bigger bumper.
And circumventing the gates? Bad idea for civilians, criminal entitlement for authorities!
That's like playing Russian roulette with a grenade
I am an operator trainer and do the accident investigation for the company I work for. From the video evidence the FD is at fault 100%.
Remember. Trains can be on any track, in any direction, at any time. Do not run gates or signals. Look. Listen. Live.
I can see how this could happen, but it blows my mind that the Fire truck driver thought it was OK to cross when he had a red light and the gates are down! You have to wonder about the training they get for driving.
Guy who was driving the fire truck will be looking for another job.
The driver and his officer. They should know better than to do something so careless. 🙄🙄☹️
No, it's the lieutenant, captain, or senior man in the front seat who is to blame, not the driver if he didn't see it coming.
@@JamesBerlo Gates were down !! Both firefighters in the front seat are irresponsible.
@@JamesBerlo no it is 100% any driver in the worlds fault for jumping off of a bridge.
@@JamesBerlo both the Cap or Loo in charge of the truck has lost their pension. Maybe the chauffer loses their's also. Totally avoidable.
I live in Ft Lauderdale, and can tell you for a fact there was NO reason for this. The driver of the fire truck was impatient, and should NOT have proceeded at least until the gate began to go up.
From my own timing of the process ( and this event is different since the gate was already down) . The gates get activated and take 15 seconds to lower into position. There is a 10 second period of calm, followed by the BrightLine train entering the level crossing and within 5 seconds it has cleared the crossing. Another 10 seconds, and the gates begin going up, taking another 15 seconds. All under 1 minute.
So the crash, again caused by an impatient driver, had the very real potential to become a MCI with multiple fatalities. And the medical emergency they were going to was further delayed because they did not follow the most basic rules of the road. I just hope EVERY fire department training officer nationwide uses this video as a training exercise. Hell, not just fire, but every police department as well. The very same thing happened last year in Texas, a freight train was moving right to left across a street, and 2 police cars were on a call somewhere beyond the trackS, as in more than 1 ( which,as a local, they ought to have been cognizant of!) J ust the near train cleared the crossing, the 1st police car bolted around the gates and directly in front of the train that was going left to right across the crossing, which he couldn't see . ( But the reason the gates were still lowered) He survived ,but whatever call he thought was so important probably took the backseat in priority as his department flooded the crash site .
At this point, Brightline hitting something is like a person getting hit by lightning after they get told to come inside. It's not the train's fault, its the pedestrian's.
Brightline operates using the Florida East Coast (FEC) tracks. Before Brightline started running, these tracks went from single track to double track, and the signaling and gates were vastly improved.
At many of the other FEC railroad crossings in Miami-Dade, Broward, and Palm Beach counties they have doubled the crossing gates. If this had been done for this crossing it would have fully blocked both the eastbound and westbound lanes crossing the tracks. Unfortunately these crossings in Delray Beach are not double-gated.
The fire truck clearly broke the law by disregarding both the down gate and the signal lights being lit. 100% at fault. Stupid and sad.
👿
How dare these trains silently sneak up on motorists unannounced and attacking from a random direction...
Watch your back, people!
Never go passed a down gate they are there for your safety. If the gates are up still look both ways before crossing. Look both ways before crossing all railroad tracks.
Its a new America thanks to Joe and Friends. Better look both ways and UP before crossing a one-way street.
Yes and no. An industrial spur that hasn't been used in 10 years because it doesn't have any more industry on it doesn't require looking in my book. If they were to use it, there would be a flag man and bells and whistles.
@@scottsmith2052 this is in fact why you see some crossings with a sign on them that says "EXEMPT", to inform school transports and hazmat drivers that they do not have to stop.
Glad this video exists. I think a lot of people don't really consider the safety reason the railroad crossing "X" sign also can have a sign that states 2 tracks or 3 tracks etc.
This hurts my heart as a mother of a paramedic however you NEVER try to beat a train. It’s never the conductors fault.
Yeah im Blaming that Fire truck driver He fucked up
only if you saw it coming can you blame him,
@@JamesBerlo your suppose to wait after the crossing goes up or make sure the track is clear
@@AroyalOfficalYT Ya no kidding what is your point? Its only the Drivers responsibility if he was aware of the Passenger Train. The driver wouldn't do it unless the officer told him its o.k.
It is always 100% the responsibility of the driver. End of story. Full stop. Don't drive around gates that are down, pretty simple rules to follow.
@@AroyalOfficalYT True but as a fire engineer (term for the operator of a fire rig) you have your mind on the call you are responding to, you preplan in your mind what you are going to do, where to position your rig, what type of fire is it, one hell of a lot of questions. In this case the fireman is going to have to live with the error he made for a long time. While the railroad will probably sue the city for damages and liability. It is a no-win situation for all concerned. As a retired fire chief and ex railroader for the CB&Q I see both side s of the coin on this one.
your more explained version makes it better than others
My friend was killed in Fayetteville, NC when he went around the crossing gates. The ladder truck he was driving was dtuck in drivers side door by an Amtrak train, he was ejected and the ladeer truck rolled over on top of him. Dave never stood a chance.
sorry to hear this
SAME THING HAPPENED IN DETROIT A FEW YEARS AGO.
A DFD fire truck parked on the tracks, and an Amtrak came and demolished it!
That driver should have their license permanently revoked for pulling a stunt like that.
5 years at least.
they should have known better than to go around the downed gates.
We can send a satellite to the sun, send men to the moon, but we can't stop traffic at a railroad crossing. HOUSTON. WE HAVE A PROBLEM.
but can we really send men to the moon? I thought that was faked, plenty of proof out there if you care to look for it...
Auto traffic better stop (like they're supposed to do now) obviously because the speeding trains can't!!! Trains ON THEIR TRACKS have the right of way. What's so difficult about remembering that??
The issue isn't with the railroad crossing.
Most automobile drivers are obviously not rocket scientists.
@@paulsto6516 it is, there shouldn't be a level crossing on such a heavily transited railway such as this
Grade crossings in double-track territory are absolutely dangerous for this reason. And it's asking for trouble when they make them into quiet zones.
You are right, Brightline operate at speeds up to 79 MPH, which is track speed along that section of track. Once Brightline heads along the east-west corridor Brightline can travel as fast as 125 MPH making it the second fastest passenger train after Amtrak Acela Express that reaches speeds of 150 MPH.
Even FEC Freight trains reach speed of 70 to 75 MPH making it the fastest way to ship freight along the east coast of Florida from Miami to Jacksonville.
There seem to be a lot of drivers who take their lives into their hands by driving around the crossing gates along the FEC tracks. What makes it so stupid is that it does not take that long for Brightline to pass, it is a short train traveling at very high speed.
Fast US passenger train, not fastest train.
This reminds me of the police car that got hit by a union pacific years ago with a similar incident,occurred on a 2 track main where multiple police cars were seen with lights on waiting for the slow train to pass,for context it was a autorack,as soon as the train cleared the first cop went over only to be struck by another train in the opposite direction,unfortunately the up auto completely blocked the veiw of the other train,still it was a dangerous maneuver,another clear reminder to look both ways before crossing especially if your veiw is blocked,I'm glad everyone is ok
My city is full of railroad everywhere... And school buses, gasoline truck end even fire truck always stop at the reils see right see left and then drive away... Is just common sense...✅
A crossing gate doesn't really block a crossing, you can easily go through, they're designed to break easily to not trap vehicles on the crossing. The reason for it not blocking the opposite lane is also to not trap vehicles who entered the crossing on a closing gate. No fault with this design at all
It's obvious the train has the right away because there's no way to stop it in time.
I took a Vo-Tech truck driver training course for six months. Among the many things I learned was that if approaching a railroad crossing and the red lights are still flashing one must never try to go across. There is a light rail crossing in downtown Minneapolis MN, where there is two tracks crossing the street. Can't tell you how many folks take off across with the lights still flashing.
While not legal it is usually safe to cross if the gates are starting to raise. It can become an issue when the gates then start to close for another train and traffic gets trapped on the rails. In that case the best thing to do is drive through the gate. It will break away as designed. Many people are scared to break the gate but then get their car destroyed by the train.
you can tell me
Don't like to fault our first responders, but this is squarely on the firefighter driving that truck. Gates were down. Train can 't come to a stop that quickly. Like it or not, EVERYONE MUST YIELD to a train in that situation.
If someone wants to give themselves the title of "professional" fireman they better act like a "professional". But sadly few actually want to live up to holding themselves accountable for their actions.
I used to drive ambulances near a train station. When the train would pull in the station if it didn't pull up all the way the gates would stay down. Impatient drivers would go around. Even with lights flashing I would NEVER EVER go around the gates
The FD driver saw the parked train on the other track and assumed the gate was down due to the stalled train. This happens sometimes. The FD driver should have known that there were TWO tracks at this intersection; one for the stalled/parked FEC freight train and another for the long distance Brightline passenger train. As we see, the firetruck DID NOT have its emergency lights on. They were probably just out for a casual, routine drive around town as they often do and weren't even responding to an emergency call. Unfortunately Delray taxpayers are looking at massive $$$ lawsuits from the 'injured' train passengers. I do feel for the FD driver responsible for a single mistake/indiscretion. BTW, I have lived in Delray for decades.
Well said. And good point about the FD driver possibly assuming the gate was down due to a stalled train.
I’d like to know why the Fire truck driver couldn’t wait for the gates to go up? The gates going up is a sure indication all trains have cleared the crossing. Thanks for an excellent video.
Nobody in that fire truck even saw the train that hit them and if they did it was a very short glimpse before all Hell broke loose in the cab of that fire truck!! Yes they were extremely lucky that day...
@@chuxtuff But they should have seen it. The classic double-track accident is when the second train is on the far tracks so that the vehicle that tries to cross and gets hit can't see it because the first train is blocking their view to the second train. But that wasn't the case in this incident. The second train, the Brightline, was on the near track, so if the driver of the fire engine had simply looked before crossing, he would have seen the other train coming since there was nothing blocking his line of sight.
@@Androctonus84 I agree with everything you said but I still don't think anyone on/in that truck saw that train. Look where he stopped. You had 5 humans with 10 eyeballs in the cab of that firetruck and not one of them saw that train in the distance? What were they looking at? Was the Brightline train sounding his whistle?? He should've been laying on it solidly as soon as it came into his view. Or was this another railroad "Quiet Zone" as per City Hall?? If that's the case Brightline ought to mention that if they can't sound their horns in the usual accustomed manner, IN THE NAME OF SAFETY & RISK BL will not be responsible for what might happen if the horns go silent. That's lunacy run amuk if that's what happens. Increased speed limits in an urban setting with no whistles aloud?? That's flirting with disaster if you ask me.
@@Androctonus84 Perhaps they saw the one pass and didn't think to look for a second train / thought they were in the clear. Probably some "Tunnel vision" at play. Should have waited for the gates to go up. Driver of the truck is 100% at fault. Glad everyone lived, but I imagine the driver might be looking for a new job after such a careless accident.
@@james1787 I'm sure that's probably correct, but it's still a really brain-dead mistake to make. Even on a single track there is sometimes another engine following the first train, and trains sometimes stop and back up, so if the gate is down you always need to check that it's safe first. Yes, thankfully it sounds like everyone is going to be okay.
The extra two barriers mentioned are much shorter than the ones for the roadway. They're designed to cover the pedestrian part of the crossing, which can be approached from the opposite direction than road traffic on the same side. Automatic crossings *usually* leave the offside of the road open so that drivers finding themselves on the crossing when it activates are always able to clear it without finding a barrier in front of them. Manually controlled crossings usually block both sides of the road, nearside first, and are monitored by the signalman; with this type, the signal is not cleared for the train until the crossing is both fully activated and shown to be clear of obstructions.
I live in the UK and I'm constantly surprised how difficult Americans find level crossings (RailRoad crossings). If you need to cross you have to wait until the exit is clear and you never ever ignore lights or barriers which almost every crossing has.
343 million Americans in 2023. 2000 cars were hit. So 2000 people made mistakes and it's "you americans" and a lecture on train crossings.
In Hillsboro, OR there was a crash between a light rail train and a a fire truck in 2005. The damage to the leading LRV was so bad it had to get an overhaul. The intersection where it happened did not have gates because it’s a street-running section of track. The traffic lights malfunctioned and the fire truck only noticed the train once it was too late.
Trains have right away because they cannot stop.
not on a dime they can't and at speed with weight probably another 1/2 mile to complete stop freight lines even longer the more weight they pull
People can't seem to grasp this simple fact!
Huh ... imagine, firefighters NOT following safety protocol! It doesn't matter how many crossings there are as long as the signals are working when the train is coming it is and will be 100% the fault of the vehicle driver in an accident.Apparently gates need to block the entire road on both sides because people are sooo stupid they will illegally drive around the gate because they are impatient. I have little if any empathy for stupidity.
Unbelievable that the fire truck would go around down signal gates. It looks like four-quad gates are needed down there.
When a fire truck is being reckless is pretty rare..... Its usually hapoen with truck driver and car driver
Clearly the fire truck driver assumed the line was clear once the freight train had passed and didn't anticipate a train on the opposite track at the same time. Even professional drivers are guilty of trying their luck (and losing).
"Professional drivers" don't cross with the gates down. Just because he gets a paycheck to drive doesn't always make for a "professional driver".
Local protocols require fire/ems vehicles to be stationed on both sides of the railroad tracks in case a train is blocking crossings when emergency calls occur. Example: Newton,KS, based on area and population, could easily operate with one fire station. However, because the BNSF railway cuts through the center of town, they maintain two fire stations, one on each side.
Well, that the truck crewed survived tells me that the train was going way under 80. It's TBD whether the driver was running well under 80 or he tripped "emergency." About 30 years ago near Bealeton, VA. The firetruck was operated by volunteers and all 5 men were killed. The crossing only had a sign and it's quite possible that the driver didn't realize the train was coming. As in the recent crash, it was a passenger train traveling at high speed. Most of the trains go much slower. The firetruck was literally broken into pieces.
History continues to repeat itself.6 Firefighters died doing the exact same thing decades ago in Quebec.
AS A CDL DRIVER
YOU ABSOLUTELY NEVER TAKE TRAIN TRACKS FOR GRANTED!!!!!
I want to hear about the citations that were issued to the fire department!
And shame on the city for trying to deflect the blame onto Brightline trains!!
How despicable and unwarranted!
Did the firetruck even have his emergency lights on? Hard to make it out in the video, but, if the driver wasn’t even heading to a call this makes his actions even worse.
Yes the emergency lights appeared to be on. Still, no excuse.
@@Sevenfeet0 I frequently haul trains thru Chicago, and I can't tell you how many times I had a near miss with CPD cruiser going around the gates with the cop only turning the lights on for that dumb maneuver, as if those will make me stop a heavy freight on a dime. And what's really galling is that those are the same cops who will write you a $500 dollar ticket for doing the same thing.
It is quite clear that the fire truck had crossed over to the other lane in order to go around the gates. I've been driving trains for over 20 years in the Chicago area and am astounded that despite fines of $500 and signs everywhere warning not to try to cross until the gates are all the way up, people still go around the gates frequently.
I’m retired from CSX people don’t care it seems me as a engineer 30 yrs they never will not knowing that their stupidity can wipe out a whole community if a derailment happens
The train was on the same side as the fire truck so how did the driver of the fire truck not see the train coming at them? i can see if the train was on the opposite side of the freight train was blocking the view, but either way, the driver of the fire truck should have waited until the crossing gates went up, made sure that they look both directions, on both tracks, and make sure no train was coming.
Another thing to consider .the gates and warning lights, bell only activate when their is movement on the rail. If a train stops close to the gate, the gates and warning turns off, until it sensors pick up movement. That was part of the misconception on the incident in 2000, That train was still, the operator thought the train stopped was tripping the sensor, however it was the other train that wasnt visible that was moving that was activating the sensor. Also its roughly 30 to 40 seconds from the time the gates start going down to the time the train reaches the crossing in most cases. Not only am I a career FF engineer, but also a railroad modeler and enthusiast. So I have a little knowledge on that subject as well.
Its unfortunate, but in today's world, common sense....or "sense" for that matter, is lacking. It's all over, including police and fire. They have legislation/programs/directives/whatever it's called, to hire unqualified people for positions, and it? will on get worse, in ALL career fields.
I worry about the train crew in accidents like this. If the engine strikes a car or some short vehicle it is not likely for the vehicle to rise up to the level of the crew cab. But, if the train strikes a truck or tall vehicle it is right at the level of the windshield and the crew has no where to go to get out of the way of anything coming through the windshield.
When I worked for the railroad in the '80s-'90s, there was a poster in the road master's office of a collision at a crossing that read "If it's a tie... You lose." 😁 🚂>🚒
when i was stationed in japan they always had direction indicators for trains to show which direction the train was travelling either left right or both.
It's becoming clear people in Florida have no idea what to do with train crossings, so many incidents regarding Brightline in Florida.
Yeah, this stuff never happens anywhere else. 🙄
@@Narpets2112 it doesn’t happen anywhere else in this country this often. The lack of common sense in Florida is absolutely ridiculous. Amtrak has been running trains at much higher speeds than Brightline for decades and the number of pedestrian deaths that were accidents (NOT Suicides) is a fraction of what’s happening in Florida. Grade crossing collisions can be counted on one hand in the last 20 years on the Northeast Corridor
Simple FACT...
People in Florida just don't know what a train is!!!
There have been more crossing accidents with Brightline in the short time they've been operating than the 50 years AMTRAK has been around.
@@FFred-us9tw If you're talking about Acela, I think most of that route is grade separated. Brightline wanted to do it on the cheap, with level crossings.
@ their are 11 Grade crossings on the Northeast Corridor that the Acela passes over daily. There has been 1 Grade crossing incident with an Acela in 25 years. Around 3 with Amtrak Regional trains. The last one had zero injuries. Again, trains aren’t the problem. The people in Florida are.
This reminds me of a major accident in Northern Virginia in the late 1990’s (?). A fully loaded fire tanker-truck was responding to a vehicle fire on a farm adjacent to the NorfolkSouthern main south of Manassas, VA…the tanker tried to beat the train across a private crossing and failed. The two junior firefighters were killed as Amtrak’s CRESCENT derailed at track-speed and the entire train hit the ground, with cars stacking on top of each other. Remarkably, no fatalities on the train.
In rail safety classes you learn nearly all rail accidents occur with a second train at a crossing.
That's going to be a 2 million plus tab.....
NEVER drive onto tracks you cannot clear.
They better have FIRED whoever the driver of that $500k (or Million $$$)fire truck and their chief!!!
No questions asked, “You’re FIRED!” and here’s a bill for the million dollar piece of GOVERNMENT equipment YOU DAMAGED!!!! Have a nice day!!!
And this is why quiet zones should be abolished
It doesn't really matter. If the warning devices are functioning, then it is entirely the fault of those that get hit for ignoring them. It's the law. People get hit at whistle crossings too.
I suspect that there is also a quiet zone here. The setup here with one train just having cleared the crossing is exactly why banning train horns is insane. If the train had been sounding its horn as it was approaching the crossing, the driver of the fire engine may have realized that the way was not clear. Safety should never take a back seat to mollifying a few loud complainers.
As an engineer you are instructed to blow the horn in quiet zones if warnings are needed My guess is that on this tape the horn just couldnt be heard from the camera
Kinda similar to the Midland, Texas officer that got hit while trying to go to an emergency and was hit by a second train going the other direction.
Saw that video and you are right. You gotta respect the train! (m.ua-cam.com/video/3viwYTZuM2s/v-deo.html&pp=ygUYVGV4YXMgc2hlcmlmZiBoaXQgYnkgY2Fy)
Few, if any, of these accidents are Brightline's fault. As a south Florida resident and Brightline customer, I actually feel for Brightline, as they're an excellent company that runs one of the best railroads in the country, yet they constantly deal with municipalities and a public that fights them on every decision, a freight partner in FEC that hasn't upgraded their own railroad crossings to completely block the roadways and governments banning train horns at crossings to give additional warnings of oncoming trains. I have heard from several people I know that sometimes the gates only come down with seconds to spare, and I believe the FRA requires at least 20 second intervals between the train reaching a crossing and lights/gates activating. It's a real problem and with South Florida's absurdly congested roads, we need Brightline (and Trirail) to succeed badly.
Most of all, drivers, including this fire engine driver, need to be smarter at crossings. Don't ever stop on tracks, don't go around down gates, don't cross tracks until gates are going up.
Fortunately, none of the injuries were fatal for all involved. 00:32
If a fire fighter is that reckless and/or badly trained, something is seriously rotten in the state of Denmark, and a full investigation and re-education of ALL emergency personnel should be conducted. All emergency services employees should know in their bones that safety must always be the foremost concern on any emergency drive. Driving under lights and sirens is dangerous enough for both the emergency vehicles AND other travelers at the best of times, and you can't help people unless you get there safely.