FRA Database Search - Federal Railroad Administration

=====Accident    10 =========================================================================================
    DERAILMENT                 on Nov 11 1982    Southern Pacific Transportation Co. [S   RR Report E5522               
    LATITUDE:      .                   LONGITUDE:     .                                                                 
Involving  FREIGHT TRAIN       at 6 :50AM                                                                               
Locos(Total/derailed)   5/0    in California     Southern Pacific Transportation Co. [S    Track Maintenance RR         
 Cars(Total/derailed)  51/17      County of FRESNO                                                                      
Speed 045  Eqp Dmg $295,800         Near or in SELM

HAZARDOUS MATERIAL                                                                                                      
10 cars carrying hazmat            1 damaged/derailed            0 cars released            0 people evacuated

....................Track information....................                                                               
Main       Damage  $65,000   Milepost 220.7   FRA Class 1       Total Casualties:  0 Deaths and 0  Injured              

....Method(s) of operation   ....Cause(s)....                                                                           
Traffic control                                                                                                         
Bolt hole crack or break                                                                                                
Time table/train orders                                                                                                 

Special instructions

TRAIN SLOWED FOR SELMA & WHEN BRAKES RELEASED TRAIN WENT INTO EMERGENCY DERAILING 17 CARS.                              
                                                                                                                        
=====Accident    11 =========================================================================================
[THIS incident seems as if it were directly related to the above Selma train derailment.  This would have been on the San Joaquin River Valley railroad route, which was closed at this time, and so by context, it may be that this train was carrying the "behind the wreckage" undamaged cars back south.  Considering it was 2 locomotives, and 9 cars, does this seem logical?]
                                                                                                                        
    DERAILMENT                 on Nov 11 1982    Southern Pacific Transportation Co. [S   RR Report E5542               
    LATITUDE:      .                   LONGITUDE:     .                                                                 
Involving  WORK TRAIN          at 5 :30PM                                                                               
Locos(Total/derailed)   2/0    in California     Southern Pacific Transportation Co. [S    Track Maintenance RR         
 Cars(Total/derailed)   9/1       County of TULARE                                                                      
Speed 040  Eqp Dmg     $400         Near or in EARLIMART                                                                

....................Track information....................                                                               
Main       Damage   $4,450   Milepost 274.6   FRA Class 3       Total Casualties:  0 Deaths and 0  Injured              

....Method(s) of operation   ....Cause(s)....                                                                           
Automatic block                                                                                                         
Broken rim                                                                                                              
Traffic control

WHEEL ON SP 463342 BROKE DERAILING TRAIN.
                                                                                                                        
=====Accident    12 =========================================================================================
[does not seem relevant to this particular train derailment]
                                                                                                                        
    DERAILMENT                 on Nov 12 1982    Southern Pacific Transportation Co. [S   RR Report 88592               
    LATITUDE:      .                   LONGITUDE:     .                                                                 
Involving  FREIGHT TRAIN       at 3 :15AM                                                                               
Locos(Total/derailed)   3/0    in California     Southern Pacific Transportation Co. [S    Track Maintenance RR         
 Cars(Total/derailed)  33/5       County of SANTA CLARA                                                                 
Speed 012  Eqp Dmg  $41,500         Near or in SAN JOSE

....................Track information....................                                                               
Main       Damage   $9,380   Milepost 47.0    FRA Class 1       Total Casualties:  0 Deaths and 0  Injured              

....Method(s) of operation   ....Cause(s)....                                                                           
Automatic block                                                                                                         
Wide gage (due to defective or missing crossties)

DUE TO WIDE GAUGE & RAIL CANTED; CAUSED WHEEL ON 30TH CAR TO DROP INSIDE RAIL.

=====Accident    13 =========================================================================================
[THIS incident is also of interest, because according to all news reports, the San Joaquin River Valley railroad route was still closed the morning following the Selma Train Wreck, and Fresno was just 17 miles north of the Selma Train Wreck.  But a report of 129 cars on a train with 4 locomotives sounds like an independent freight train.  If so, how did it get there?  Did it originate in Fresno?  Or is there another explanation?]
                                                                                                                        
    DERAILMENT                 on Nov 12 1982    Southern Pacific Transportation Co. [S   RR Report E5832               
    LATITUDE:      .                   LONGITUDE:     .                                                                 
Involving  FREIGHT TRAIN       at 7 :12AM                                                                               
Locos(Total/derailed)   4/0    in California     Southern Pacific Transportation Co. [S    Track Maintenance RR         
 Cars(Total/derailed) 129/5       County of FRESNO                                                                      
Speed 015  Eqp Dmg  $10,000         Near or in FRESNO

HAZARDOUS MATERIAL                                                                                                      
1 cars carrying hazmat            0 damaged/derailed            0 cars released            0 people evacuated           

....................Track information....................                                                               
Main       Damage     $216   Milepost 205.0   FRA Class 1       Total Casualties:  0 Deaths and 0  Injured              

....Method(s) of operation   ....Cause(s)....                                                                           
Automatic block                                                                                                         
Buffing or slack action excessive, train handling                                                                       
Time table/train orders                                                                                                 

Special instructions

WHILE STOPPING FOR RED SIGNAL TRAIN HAD UNDESIRED EMERGENCY.                      

===========================================================================================================           

===========================================================================================================

How to perform this or similar searches yourself:

Step 1

Go to:

http://safetydata.fra.dot.gov/OfficeofSafety/default.aspx

Step 2

This lists all the reports available and you may like to explore this 
but I will follow just one.

Go to:

3.11 Accident Detail Report
select this

Step 3

This allows a report to be generated. The fields are as follows:

Reporting level - Select individual railroad - S for all 
railroads beginning S and then Southern Pacific. You can go All.
Region - Not particularly useful - leave as default
State and County - Advisable to reduce the size of enquiry
Type of accident - see drop down menu
Type of track - See drop down menu
Cause of accident - Ok if you are interested if not leave as default
Hazmat - Dangerous goods incidents
Passenger trains - Restrict to those or leave as default
Damages - Select by cost of repair otherwise leave as default
Report order - See drop down menu
Search time frame - Year (1975 to date - see note below)
Month (allows only one month at a time)
Note: accidents seem to take between 2 and 3 months to get onto the 
database.

Step 4

The first page displayed is the instructions for use and the accident 
reports start on the next page - scroll down. If no reports for 
selection then the banner says No Reports for Selection
The order is as follows:

Type of Accident
Date
Railroad
Report number
Longitude and latitude (if known)
Type of train
Time of accident
Number of locos and cars involved - for example 4 locos and 6 cars
The state in which the accident happened
The county
The track maintainer
The speed at time of incident
The place name of the incident
Track damage costs
Milepost location of incident
Railroad class
Casualties
Notes on method of train operation - free form
Accident recorded cause
Free form comments section which often contain the loco reporting 
number and train id. Note that when an accident happens on a train 
of one railroad on the tracks of another there will be two reports

At the end is the totals for the whole enquiry as below:

Number of reports retrieved
Number of accidents covered (note that there may be more than one 
report per accident)
Number of locos and cars involved
Cumulative casualties
Equipment damage costs
Number of cars carrying hazardous materials, how many derailed and if 
there was any release.

The limit on search by a single month in a single year means you will 
not be overloaded but enter all in all fields will produce a large 
report which is not particularly useful unless you are only wanting 
to see the totals across the nation for a single month.

Good Luck and and as I have been using this for something over 20 
years if anyone wants any advise than just mail

Ray State 
(published on the ESPEE Yahoo Email Group on 8/18/17)

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The Fresno Bee newspaper - November 12, 1982

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