MEC&F Expert Engineers : 03/18/15

Wednesday, March 18, 2015

TRAIN-CAR ACCIDENT IN SLIDELL RESULTS IN MINOR INJURIES




MARCH 18, 2015

SLIDELL, LOUISIANA

Slidell Police responded Wednesday to a train accident involving an Amtrak train and a car.

The accident closed the railroad crossing at Front Street and Gause Boulevard and the crossing at Front and Lafayette streets.

Police reported only minor injuries. The roadway is expected to be open by 9:30 p.m.  Just another driver who is in a hurry, creating problems for the rest of us.

Remember: it is better to arrive later at your current destination, than to arrive early at your final destination.

A POPULAR PERSONAL TRAINER AND YOUTUBE PERSONALITY WAS HIT AND KILLED BY A FREIGHT TRAIN IN BUCKHEAD, GEORGIA TUESDAY AFTERNOON. HE TRESPASSED RAILROAD PROPERTY AND WAS JUMPING ROPE CLOSE TO THE TRACKS.





MARCH 18, 2015

ATLANTA, GEORGIA

A popular personal trainer and YouTube personality was hit and killed by a freight train in Buckhead Tuesday afternoon.

The Fulton County Medical Examiner's office has identified the victim as 30-year-old Travis Williams.

Williams, who had changed his name to Achilles Williams, was a personal trainer who often videotaped outdoor workouts for his YouTube channel. Investigators say Williams and a friend were shooting a video near the train tracks over Roxboro Road near East Paces Ferry at the time of the accident. Williams was jumping rope while the friend shot video.

Investigators say Williams was not on the tracks, but was close enough to them to be struck as the freight train went by. They say he apparently misjudged the width of the train in relation to the size of the tracks. His friend was not injured but he was knocked down a hill by the impact.

Friends and loved ones have been posting memories of Williams on Instagram and Twitter since the accident.

Stay away from the train tracks, please.  Trains are fascinating to watch, but only from a distance.  Besides, trespassing on railroad property is prohibited. Too many people have died being near the tracks.  And, jumping rope close to the tracks?  Was he trying to tell people that it is alright to trespass on dangerous property and do fitness activities? Talking about taking risks or being crazy.

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NTSB TO HOLD FORUM ON THE DANGERS OF RAILROAD TRESPASSING

MARCH 11, 2015

WASHINGTON, DC

The National Transportation Safety Board will hold a public forum March 24-25 on the dangers of trespassing on the railroad right-of-way.

While railroad tracks have long held a cultural resonance with Americans, featured in motion pictures, TV shows, music videos and photography, they are private property.  And they can be a deadly place. In 2013, 476 people were killed and 432 were injured in trespassing accidents, according to preliminary data from the Federal Railroad Administration.

The forum, Trains and Trespassing: Ending Tragic Encounters, will be chaired by NTSB Board Member Robert L. Sumwalt. It will feature speakers who have been seriously injured by trains; those whose communities have been affected; and railroad employee assistance program employees whose train crews have struck people on railroad property. The forum will draw on the expertise of railroads, regulators, and researchers, among others, to review the diversity of trespassing accidents and incidents and look at current and future prevention strategies.

The forum will be held at the NTSB's Board Room and Conference Center, located at 429 L'Enfant Plaza, S.W., Washington, D.C. However, on March 25, the forum will include a tour of Norfolk Southern’s safety train at Union Station.
More information about the forum can be found here: http://www.ntsb.gov/trespassing

The public can view the forum in person or by live webcast on the NTSB's website. As soon as they are available, an agenda and webcast details will be posted.


SUV COLLIDES WITH LIGHT RAIL TRAIN IN DENVER, COLORADO; 2 CHILDREN INJURED






MARCH 18, 2015

DENVER, COLORADO

Light rail service was delayed after an SUV crashed into an RTD light rail train in Denver Wednesday afternoon.

It happened at the intersection of 29th and Welton streets around 4:30 p.m.

Denver Fire said two kids were transported to the hospital with minor injuries. The front-end of the SUV was heavily damaged.

D Line trains were delayed for 15 minutes an hour after the incident.
Source: www.9news.com

NAPHTHA IN THE AIR. CHEMICAL LEAK AT PBF REFINERY HOSPITALIZES 16 PAULSBORO HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS IN NEW JERSEY














MARCH 18, 2015

A chemical leak at PBF Refinery this week sent multiple Paulsboro High School students and faculty members to a local hospital Wednesday morning.

According to Mark Wilgus, a spokesman for PBF Refinery, the product has been leaking from a broken seal on the top of a tank since Monday, causing an odor throughout the borough.

Naphtha, a liquid hydrocarbon mixture, is a partially refined product that is extremely flammable and irritating to the eyes and respiratory system. It can also affect the central nervous system.

A high vapor concentration of the product can cause irritation and discomfort to the eyes and slight irritation to the skin, according to its material safety data sheet. Vapors can also cause "central nervous system depression."

If the liquid is inhaled into the lungs it can cause chemical pneumonia, severe lung damage, respiratory failure and death.

Paulsboro High School bused 16 students and two teachers to Inspira Medical Center in Woodbury Wednesday who were complaining of eye irritation or difficulty breathing and several other Paulsboro residents visited the hospital on their own later Wednesday afternoon.

As of 4 p.m. the majority of the students had been released, while two students and those who went in later remained in the hospital awaiting evaluations, Inspira spokeswoman Molly Tritt said.

As of Wednesday afternoon, the contents of the leaking tank have been removed and cleanup has begun, Wilgus said.

"We're hoping this is the end of the ongoing tank issue we've had since Monday," Wilgus added. "We're hoping to get past this and continue to work with local officials, including school officials, to fully understand what happened. We certainly don't enjoy when this kind of thing happens and we cause disruptions at the school."

Sitting directly across the street from the refinery, Paulsboro High School had odors present throughout the week, but didn't experience problems until Wednesday.

Air monitors were used in all of Paulsboro's schools and throughout the community since Monday, but did not pick up a troublesome presence until Wednesday when between three and five parts per million hydrocarbons were detected in the second and third floors of the high school, according to Fire Chief Alfonso Giampola.

"Three to five parts per million is not a dangerous level, but it is an odor level and can affect those with weaker immune systems," he said.

Students were released around noon Wednesday and the windows and doors in the building were opened to air it out.

As of mid-afternoon, the air detectors were reading at .01 ppm, but emergency personnel will continue to monitor throughout the night and again at 4:30 a.m. to determine if it is safe to reopen the school Thursday morning.

Who in the right mind would build a school and playground next to a refinery?  Only in New Jersey.
 
Source:www.nj.com