WASHINGTON — A CSX Transportation conductor trainee was killed when he fell from a railcar during a shoving move and was hit by the train, according National Transportation Safety Board’s preliminary report on a fatal accident June 26 at the Seagirt Marine Terminal in Baltimore.
The accident occurred about 8:05 p.m. and involved a yard job with two locomotives and five empty intermodal flatcars, working with a crew of an engineer, a conductor and the conductor trainee. During the shoving move, the conductor was on one side of the lead railcar and the trainee was on the other; the trainee fell as train slowed after the trainee had communicated that the train needed to stop within five car lengths.
The Federal Railroad Administration has previously issued a safety bulletin as a result of the accident, advising railroads and employees to review safety procedures for shoving moves [see “FRA issues safety bulletin …,” Trains News Wire, July 7, 2023].
The NTSB’s ongoing investigation will focus on rules and training for conductors riding equipment, and the design and riding configuration for the equipment involved in this incident.
