Tornadoes and Amtrak

[RRUserious]

In case anyone cares, the recent crash of a plane at Islamabad airport is being laid to wind shear in a thunderstorm. Flights are routinely diverted to keep them away from severe weather. So it isn't just train passengers who are inconvenienced by severe weather. Better to be late and alive.

 

[George Harris]

In addition to the normal National Weather Service warnings, several, (most? all?) railroad companies have private weather services to provide warnings specific to loactions on their lines. They will stop all trains in the vicinity rather than run them through areas where there is the potenitial for weather caused derailments. Also, a passenger car, even the superlines, would be less likely to be blown over than a double stack carrying empty containers, and probably more so than a lot of other empty freight cars as well. It is like bridge failures: Not going to happen under a passenger train. Loaded freight trains are much heavier and will find the weak ones first. Get on the train and don't worry.

A thought on evacuation to shelter in a tornado. I would say you are better off staying on the train.

 

[Ispolkom]

A thought on evacuation to shelter in a tornado. I would say you are better off staying on the train.

Better off than in a below-ground shelter? I don't think so. Better off than sheltering in the ditch? Probably.

When the Empire Builder was hit by a tornado in 1931, all the cars were derailed, and more than half of the passengers were injured. My favorite quote:

Interestingly, the coupling between the tender and the mail car was found to be closed after the impact. This suggests that the mail car was lifted vertically out of the coupling, at least a few inches before being blown from the tracks.

I'm not sure how much 1930s heavy-weight cars weighed, compared to Superliner cars.