Amtrak crash: Truck firm has unsafe history
A driver working for John Davis Trucking Co. of Battle Mountain smashed through crossing gates and into two double-decker cars of an Amtrak train Friday, killing the driver and five people on the train. The train's route originated in Chicago.
Federal records reviews by The Associated Press on Sunday show the Nevada Department of Public Safety cited the company for two crashes in the last two years, including one in February 2010 that injured a person in Washoe County.
In a January inspection, authorities found tires on one company tractor-trailer so bald they deemed the rig an imminent hazard to public safety.
Meanwhile, Nevada Highway Patrol Trooper Chuck Allen said Sunday that officials for the Churchill County Coroner Office continued to sift through the rubble of two rail cars gutted by the fire that burned extremely hot. He said they have asked at least one forensic anthropologist to assist them late Sunday or today.
“I think it was so hot that they want to make sure they are not missing anything,” Allen told AP. “They want to figure out if there are any more bodies and, if so, how many.”
Investigators also continued Sunday to look over the scene for any clues as to why the truck driver plowed through the railroad crossing on Friday. It's expected to take up to a year to pinpoint the cause of the crash.
“Just from handling or being on the scene of so many accidents, there are so many alternatives to consider,” Allen said.
“Not necessarily just drugs or alcohol, but fatigue, driver inattention. Did he have a CB (citizen band radio)? Was he talking to his buddies behind him? If so, was he looking in the side view mirror and not looking at the road ahead?” he said. “I don't think we'll ever know for sure.”
National Transportation Safety Board member Earl Weener said Sunday that the flashing lights at the crossing guard, which are set to blink for 25 seconds before a train approaches, would have been visible from a half-mile away if someone was driving at the highway's 70 mph speed limit.
The investigation has not yet revealed how fast the driver, who was approaching the crossing from the south, might have been going, Weener said.
Two truck drivers and a train engineer watched helplessly as a semitrailer skidded the length of a football field before it smashed through crossing gates and into the train before noon Friday.
The drivers were part of a three-truck convoy that saw the gates come down and the warning lights go off as the California Zephyr approached, National Transportation Safety Board member Earl Weener said Saturday. They stopped, but the driver of the big rig in the lead did not, he said.
At the time of the collision, Weener said visibility was excellent and the crossing gates and warning lights were working. The train's engineer saw the truck approaching the crossing and realized the collision was inevitable, he said.
The engineer slammed on the emergency brakes, but the train, which was going about 78 mph in an 80-mph zone, traveled a half-mile more before it finally stopped, he said. The engineer watched the truck smash into two of the train's 10 cars through the rearview mirror.