DENVER — Details are emerging about the moment leading up to a person’s death Saturday after being struck by Union Pacific 4-8-4 No. 844 north of Denver.
About 7:45 p.m. on Saturday, the Denver Post Cheyenne Frontier Days train, a chartered special led by Union Pacific 4-8-4 Northern No. 844 and made up of 21 UP business cars carrying an estimated 700 passengers and 60 crew members, fatally struck a bystander who appears to have been attempting to photograph or video the train near a grade crossing.
No other injuries were reported.
The train was returning to Denver from Cheyenne, Wyo., where it left the city’s downtown depot at 5:12 p.m., 12 minutes late. It had arrived there at 10:35 a.m. that morning after leaving Denver on-time at 6:30 a.m.
The strike happened near the railroad’s at-grade crossing of state Route 22 near U.S. Route 85, which the UP main line parallels, in Henderson, Colo., an industrial area about 16 miles north of Denver.
The train was traveling near its top speed of 60 mph before the engineer made an emergency brake application shortly after hitting the person. About two hours later, buses began arriving to transport passengers from the scene back to the train’s original parking and boarding locations in Denver. After local law enforcement and UP officials conducted an initial investigation, the consist left the scene under diesel power at about 2 a.m., July 22.
“We are working with local authorities to see what happened leading up to the crash,” Union Pacific spokeswoman Kristen South told a local television station. The Adams County Sheriff’s Office and Commerce City Police were at the scene, but the Sheriff’s Office stated that “Union Pacific is leading the investigation.”
The victim has not been identified publicly.
A passenger who spoke to Trains News Wire, but requested anonymity, says they were riding in an open vestibule looking out the fireman’s, or left-hand, side of the train at the time of the incident. The witness describes the victim as a middle-aged Caucasian woman who was standing too close to the tracks on the east-facing side of the train and was struck by the locomotive’s pilot.
A video posted on social media, and shared with media after the fact by a local photographer, shows the victim in bright white clothing holding an item over her head just before impact. Trains News Wire editors have chosen to not publish the video or still images from the video.
She was one of a small number of onlookers who had gathered near that crossing.
About ten minutes after the train stopped, on-board UP crew members and volunteer car hosts instructed passengers to return to the car and seat in which they were ticketed and remain there until escorted off the train. Caterers had already served all meals, and alcohol service was terminated.
The train was chartered by the Denver Post Community Foundation, the charitable arm of the city’s major daily newspaper that supports local arts, culture, education and youth literacy programs. A train excursion from Denver in connection with Cheyenne’s annual Frontier Days festival has operated every year since the early 1900s.
No. 844 had been scheduled to pull another special to Cheyenne, to benefit the Union Pacific Museum, departing Denver at 1 p.m. That train operated on schedule, but was instead headed by UP No. 1943, an SD70ACe diesel locomotive painted to honor military veterans that had run behind the steam locomotive on the other excursions.
No. 844 is reportedly headed back to Cheyenne today.
— Trains News Wire contributor and blogger Malcolm Kenton was on board the Frontier Days train on Saturday.
I’m afraid the following analysis will prevail.
1) There is no reasonable way of preventing a fast moving train from hitting a person standing on the track.
2) Steam trips attract many people including some ignorant or heedless of basic safety.
3) Society believes risk of life is to be avoided at all cost.
Therefore steam trips must be abolished since there is no way to protect every person who comes to watch.
Although I don’t agree with this analysis, I fear that the Union Pacific will. A steam trip has a relatively small public relations benefit, nominal bottom line impact but potentially great negative consequences of an accident.
My sympathies go out to the crew of the 844. There will always be those amongst us that do not know what to do when that first raindrop falls.
Another case where a hardened, heartless train reached out and nabs a poor unsuspecting human standing well back and smashes her body. I myself am deaf but I am sure you could feel the roar and vibration of a 60 mph locomotive.Respect is lacking in our society in so many ways but you can’t mess with Physics. So sad.
Wave BUH BYE to the Union Pacific’s steam program and running these excursions.
That rotten outfit doesn’t even allow gatherings for retiring forty-year operating department employees since 2012, and they have been looking for an excuse to discontinue ALL of the remaining touchy-feely PR nonsense that remains for a long time.
You read it HERE first, fanboys.
A safety spotter – someone who isn’t focused on the getting of the ultimate shot and who is looking around for what is going on – is an excellent idea.
In the field of mechanized transport loss of situational awareness is the number one killer, by far. If you maintain situational awareness you have a good chance of landing your crippled aircraft/stopping your suddenly three-wheeled Chevy/etc but without it the party is over.
In aviation it is almost always never the mechanical failure which is the ultimate cause of the disaster. It is loss of situational awareness. For this reason you see CFIT, failure to recover from stall, failure to recover from engine failure, ramp strikes, failure to recover from…
There was an incident not too long ago outside Philadelphia. A hole opened up in the fuselage of an airliner (I believe caused by an engine failure) and one passenger was sucked through it and killed. The pilot maintained situational awareness, brought the problem under control, and safely landed the aircraft.
If you want to get lost in the camera have at it. But be sure someone is making sure you are safe while you do. And listen to him NOW if he tells you to move.
The above remarks are general in nature and do not form the basis for an attorney/client relationship. They are not legal advice. I am not your attorney. Go find your own damn lawyer.
The railfans I know are generally very aware of the dangers posed by moving trains and conduct themselves accordingly. As I mentioned earlier, our group has even resorted to designating one person to be the safety spotter while the rest of us take our pictures and videos. This is what many railroad track gangs now do to protect the workers and we simply ‘borrowed’ the idea.
Sadly, cellphone cameras and social media are leading many people to try and take pictures of scenes and incidents where they know nothing of the risks or dangers of the situation. People are walking into airplane propellers, into moving traffic and off high places while staring at their cellphone screens.
Both common sense and critical thinking are needed to keep yourself and others safe. Both were missing in this instance, on the part of the woman who lost her life and on the part of those around her who let her put herself in harms way. If you see someone putting themselves in danger you should speak up!
A tragic event for all concerned.
“Safety spotter” — excellent idea. I learned long ago that if chasing a train I don’t drive but rather have my wife drive since I get too caught up in the moment.
I agree that this woman’s death was senseless and tragic,but let’s not blame it on the excursion run as I am sure many others took photos along the right of way without incident. This could just as easily happened if she was photographing a UP freight drag or Amtrak. Condolences to the family,but until we are all turned into mindless automatons senseless accidents with tragic results will always be with us.
I have to agree with Gerald that we shouldn’t always try to sanitize death. I watched the video and it is horrifying, but it does graphically show what happens when you get too close the active tracks and have no situational awareness. It reminded me of that video from the 60’s or 70’s of the woman hit by the Burlington Northern commuter train in Chicago. I had seen an edited version of the video and was shocked. I then saw the unedited version which made me ill. But it did graphically depict what happens when a train meets a human. Did it make me much more aware about safe distances from tracks? You bet!
I have to support Anna Harding’s right to post. Her remarks aren’t Hallmark-card pretty. This is a rail-oriented comment site. What she posts needs to be said.
Why would anyone, including a railfan, stand so close to the tracks that they could get hit?
No amount of secururity would prevent this. Please, use common sense people! This is what happens when you loose respect of your surroundings. No video or still photo is worth loosing your life over.
TS
What “details”?
I have a disgusting feeling that Richard Anderson will use this to further bolster his argument about charter trains with rail fans on them.
Certainly a sad event, but 844 will run again, and so will 4014. I’m sure of it.
Patrick and Michael, I am just wondering if you would feel the same if this had been a homeless person that had been struck and killed by just another faceless, run of the mill freight train.
Lots of operation lifesaver excursions in the near future hopefully?
Trains needs a new moderator.
It will be interesting to see in which direction the non-railfan media points the accusatory finger in the wake of this tragedy. What do you think?
When did we become so hard hearted that we dismiss the pain and death of another human being and hand out “awards?” Who among us has not done something foolish or ignorant? Fortunately we usually survive. Shame on you.
It was at public grade crossing, which is an entirely different animal than railroad right-of-ways, so there’s that. As for requesting someone comment to be removed, it was obviously already approved by the moderators, so why would they remove a moderator approved post? Second, I have to agree with Anna, this woman, who unfortunately for her stood to close to the right-of-way is a contender for the annual Darwin awards. Do I feel sorry for family and friends of the woman…slightly, but very little as I have super low tolerance for stupidity from anyone. As for Trains not showing any photos or videos being a sign of decency….I disagree, it’s an incomplete story without more details, if Trains would’ve provided in the article the same details you could gather from photos and video then I would agree, but otherwise you’re left with half a story…remember, a picture us worth a 1000 words.
Wow so sad and so stupid all at the same time
Ms. Harding’s comments are spot-on. You can’t save people from themselves.
Jeff Schramm’s comment is spot-on as well. If you see something, say something, if they don’t listen, well…
Indeed a sad day. Let’s all vow to turn this tragedy into an opportunity. Next time you are trackside and you see dangerous behavior, say something. I’ve chased my fair share of excursions and have called out folks for standing too close to the tracks. Invite the other folks at the crossing over to stand with you. Form a photo line. Be kind to each other but look after one another.
Nathan Anderson: The railroads do try, however you can make it spray proof, water proof, fire proof, salt proof, but you can’t make it railfan proof. The fences should be at least twenty feet or more away from the closest trail and I am sure the railroads would like them further away. There are sound reasons for that. Aside from trip hazards, moving equipment hazards, and the like there is always the possibility of getting whacked with damaged or trailing equipment, or of having something fly off a car in your direction.
Part of the problem is that railfans frequently do not respect fences, and frequently do not respect “No Trespassing” signs.
Railroad rights of way are private property. If you go onto railroad property without permission you are trespassing. This makes you a criminal.
Be a good law abiding citizen and get your close-up shots with a telephoto lens. Stay off the right of way. Not only will you be in compliance with the law, but you will avoid helping give railfans a bad name.
The above comments are general in nature and do not form the basis for an attorney/client relationship. They do not constitute legal advice. I am not your attorney. Get your own damn lawyer.
The comments by Anna Harding should be removed.