Hamburger Munching Motorist Drives In Front Of Cascades Train

[fairviewroad]

Not a grade-crossing incident...but rather a "missed the curve in the road" incident:

http://www.statesmanjournal.com/article/20130325/NEWS/303250039/No-one-injured-train-vehicle-collision-South-Salem

No injuries, fortunately. Looks like the incident delayed last night's 509 by about 100 minutes. Only people still on the train

would have been folks heading to ALY and EUG, since the crash happened south of the SLM station.

http://74.242.207.63/scripts/archivefinder.pl?seltrain=509&selmonth=03&selyear=2013&selday=24

 

[FriskyFL]

Someone told this guy that the burgers were "to die for".

 

[the_traveler]

You put ketchup, mustard, mayo or relish on a hamburger, not a train! When will people learn! :wacko:

 

[SP&S]

Also damaged in the incident were cables near the tracks that Blair said were designed to prevent vehicles from driving onto the tracks at that location.

Obviously well designed ones too! What's that they say, make something foolproof and a bigger fool will come along.

 

[Bob Dylan]

That will turn out to be a Very Expensive Burger!!! Hope this Goofball has Insurance!!! :blink:

 

[me_little_me]

Didn't he know that fast food burgers are bad for you? Bet he does now!

 

[user 1215]

A streetview on google of the location shows no such prevention cable barriers.

 

[fairviewroad]

A streetview on google of the location shows no such prevention cable barriers.

You're right:

https://maps.google.com/maps?q=Boone+Road+Southeast,+Salem,+OR&hl=en&ll=44.882712,-122.983239&spn=0.002539,0.005681&sll=44.145447,-120.583402&sspn=5.266307,11.634521&oq=boone&hnear=Boone+Rd+SE,+Salem,+Marion,+Oregon&t=m&z=18&layer=c&cbll=44.882712,-122.983239&panoid=8VRcLXYC8hd_OlJJN7RTgQ&cbp=12,63.07,,0,12.15

It's possible the Streetview image was captured several years ago (I know the Streetview for my street is at least 3 years old) so the cables

were possibly added in the meantime. From the Streetview image it's easy to see how someone could drive right onto the tracks, but obviously

people take that curve safely all the time...it's just the late-night burger enthusiasts who have a problem!

There's an updated article in today's paper with a photo of the wrecked van. The cops said the airbag deployed when the vehicle hit the cables,

so the driver was unable to prevent the van from continuing onto the tracks.

The burger, it seems, was from Carls Jr.

http://www.statesmanjournal.com/article/20130326/NEWS/303260030/Bad-things-can-happen-when-you-drive-while-distracted-by-food?odyssey=mod|newswell|text|Home|p

 

[SP&S]

Don't bother him, he's eating.

Streetview doesn't show cables but two news reports mention them, perhaps they wre recently installed. Sure doesn't look like a curve I'd want to take too fast with a sloppy burger dripping in my lap. I wonder if an Armco or Jersey barrier might have worked better?

 

[chakk]

those streetview images, google images, etc., do get updated periodically. I know the image of my home has been changed at least 3 times. I suppose that Google does not datestamp the images for privacy/security reasons.

 

[the_traveler]

The burger was from Carl Jr's.

Forget the driver. Was the burger hurt? :giggle:

 

[jebr]

those streetview images, google images, etc., do get updated periodically. I know the image of my home has been changed at least 3 times. I suppose that Google does not datestamp the images for privacy/security reasons.

They do stamp with month and year. Check this example: http://goo.gl/maps/bmsdq

It's stamped with August 2008 on the bottom left.

 

[fairviewroad]

They do stamp with month and year. Check this example: http://goo.gl/maps/bmsdq
It's stamped with August 2008 on the bottom left.

Cool, never realized that. Looks like the Streetview image at the corner in question was captured on June of 2012, so less than a year

ago. So either the cops' story about the cables is bogus, or the cables were installed since last June, or the cables are so thin that

they don't show up on the Streetview image.

 

[SarahZ]

I don't even see poles for the cables in that image. They were probably installed afterward.

What is that thing on the left? An old gate? It doesn't look like it swings, and it doesn't look like it attaches to anything on the right.

 

[fairviewroad]

I think the thing on the left is a railing for a small bridge or culvert over a drainage ditch.

It's clear from the map that the road used to continue across the tracks. The grade crossing

was probably removed decades ago and the small bridge wasn't maintained, so perhaps the

railing on the right simply fell over, rusted away, or was removed long ago.

 

[SarahZ]

Oh, I see that now. Thanks!

 

[jmx53]

Thanks for pointing out the timestamp jebr, I never noticed it before!

Looking at Google Streetview and noticed some things:

A few hundred feet back on Boone Rd, there is a sign warning of the curve ahead and advising that it is a 10mph curve.

The railing on the left looks like it is an open gate suspended from the brown post (curious that there appears to be nothing connecting the top and bottom rails on the end closest to the road, also the profile of the gate looks like it is made of rail!), but even if it was closed it would not completely block the opening. It looks like this is used by railroad maintenance to access the signal equipment that is a little ways North along the tracks, so I doubt there would have been cables across the opening. They should probably keep the gate closed, and mount something reflective on it. Also, no streetlights in the area & it was at night. Seems like it would be easy for an inattentive driver to miss the signs and end up on the tracks here.

 

[DET63]

Sharp curve sign on Boone. Another warning sign a few hundred feet further down says "Pavement Ends." Does it date from before the Eastland Ave. extension to Boone Rd., or was Eastland originally unpaved? In any case, the driver should have seen one of the signs and paid attention and slowed down.

Must have been an engrossing hamburger.

 

[SP&S]

Sharp curve sign on Boone. Another warning sign a few hundred feet further down says "Pavement Ends." Does it date from before the Eastland Ave. extension to Boone Rd., or was Eastland originally unpaved? In any case, the driver should have seen one of the signs and paid attention and slowed down.
Must have been an engrossing hamburger.

Follow the streetview around the curve onto Eastland and there's a 200-300' stretch of unpaved road. Let's see; 10 mph curve, pavement ends soon, lack of attention, perhaps fantasizing over the girls used in Carl's ads (you know, the ones that look as if they've never eaten a burger in their lives). Lookie here, we have a candidate for a future Darwin Award.

 

[user 1215]

Maybe the dude just didn't want to turn Right because that's where the Compost is!