Railroad Accident Report: Rear-End Collision of Union Pacific Railroad Company Freight Trains Extra 3119 West and Extra 8044 West, Near Kelso, California, November 17, 1980

摘要

About 2:29 p.m., P.s.t., on November 17, 1980, Union Pacific Railroad Company (UP) work train Extra 3119 West ran out of control while descending a long 2.20-percent grade, overtook, and struck the rear of UP freight train Extra 8044 West (2-VAN-16) on the UP's single main track near Kelso, California. Three train crewmembers were killed and one crewmember was injured. The locomotive unit of Extra 3119 West, the caboose of Extra 8044 West, and 23 freight cars were destroyed. Total damage was estimated at $1,200,000. The National Transportation Safety Board determines that the probable cause of this accident was the dispatcher's permitting Extra 3119 West to leave Cima with inadequate braking capability, the inadvertent release of the train's brakes after they were placed in emergency from the caboose, and the UP's inadequate rules and instructions for the management of trains on mountain grades that resulted in the engineer's inability to control the speed of the train. Contributing to the accident were the failure to properly inspect and test Extra 3119 West at Las Vegas, and the inadequate maintenance of braking equipment on tie cars used in company service.