COLUMBIA, S.C. — The Norfolk Southern train that derailed Monday in Columbia struck an already derailed industrial switcher on a track adjacent to its main line, according to NS.
The newspaper The State reports it was told by NS spokesman Connor Spielmaker that the locomotive — a yellow end-cab switcher visible in some photos of the accident — had been operating on a parallel track but derailed and “encroached on the Norfolk Southern train’s right-of-way. … We’re still investigating what the [NS] train hit, but it was not another Norfolk Southern train.”
Three locomotives and three articulated container well cars derailed following the collision about 8:20 a.m. Two crew members were injured; no update on their condition was available. The accident also led to a fuel spill that was contained by authorities [see “Crew members injured …,” Trains News Wire, July 11, 2022]
Make no mistake, this is just 3rd or 4th hand information, found elsewhere, but it’s possible the switcher was using trackage which eventually connected to the NS main and ran over a derail adjacent to the main causing it to foul.
If that’s true, then the derail was not installed correctly as it should have derailed the engine away from the main.
Was there a failure of PTC to detect and report the foul? Was the “industrial railroad” switcher not required to interface with the NS PTC system? Feedback please.
The switcher must have fouled the right of way instead of the track itself. Even if it had pushed the mainline out of alignment, which is very possible, PTC would not have detected it as no electrical circuit (example would be if a rail had broken) would have been broken.
Thank you, Mr. Holte
There will be a full investigation, especially the time between the derailment and the collision. Even so, did this “industrial railroad” know what to do in the event of something fouling the main?
We need to determine what caused the switcher to derail and who owns said trackage. Sad turn of events.
NS is going to find out how good that industry’s insurance coverage was.