Personal Protection Plan for Dealing with an Emergency While Riding on an Amtrak Train

[Eric in East County]

The recent and tragic derailment of an Amtrak train in Montana, which is being discussed at length in another thread, got us to thinking about how well prepared we are for dealing with an emergency that occurs while we are traveling on an Amtrak train: a derailment, a collision with a vehicle or another train, an onboard fire, an unruly or violent passenger, a police action going down in one of the coaches, etc.

As of now, about the only extra precautions we take are to pack along a small, heavy-duty flashlight such as members of the military take into combat, and our scanner which is programmed with the frequencies used by our trains and which we’ve found to be invaluable for staying informed whenever something out of the ordinary happens.

We would appreciate hearing from experienced Amtrak travelers and Amtrak onboard staff personnel as to their personal protection plan and/or the steps they recommend we consider to better prepare ourselves for dealing with an emergency while traveling by train.

Eric & Pat

 

[Cal]

Rail incidents, especially derailments, are extremely rare. I'm not paranoid about an incident, and so I have no real plan in case something happens. I mean you don't take extra oxygen masks or smoke hoods on aircraft in case of an incident, why do the same on Amtrak?

 

[neroden]

Rail crashes are so rare that most of them have their own Wikipedia entries, except for the "hit a trespasser" collisions. In the case of those, the most important thing to have is a cellphone so you can reschedule.

 

[20th Century Rider]

I've always had a way of 'surviving' just about anything... throughout the many years of Amtrak travels I could always find a customer service agent who would be patient, listen, and understand. Even when my entire reservation was wiped out... they could go back for me and pickup the pieces.

Now that we have an out of control pandemic... an environmental catastrophe that brings severe weather and drought and fires, and national financial and political crisis... I just don't know. But instinctively I will always try to survive whatever happens. We just gotta keep trying... and have confidence in our human instinct.

The world is changing... and tilting. Let us all hope survivability remain intact.

 

[AmtrakBlue]

I take my Que Sera,Sera attitude with me wherever I go.

 

[Sauve850]

When traveling I always have a backpack as a carry on and first aid supplies are always in my backpack including blood clotting patches. Large ones. There is also a whistle in my backpack but I carry these things because I hike and fly fish alone in somewhat remote areas. If Im on a train that has an accident I imagine my supplies would be useful but that's not the main reason I carry them.

 

[Qapla]

Although there are very few disastrous train incidents - it doesn't preclude bringing some common-place things for dealing with some sort of problem.

Some things I can think of:

• flashlight
• work cloves
• long sleeve shirt
• first-aid kit
• aspirin

 

[flitcraft]

A flashlight is always useful, even without an emergency--for looking under the seat to be sure you haven't left anything there, for example. A sharp knife with a cover is handy for slicing apples and cheese, but also for cutting through duct tape to McGyver into something useful. And a small first aid kit is something I never travel without--including small ziptop packets of OTC medications, a tiny tube of Neosporin, tweezers, an ACE bandage, a tiny eyeglass repair kit, and various sizes of Bandaids. Sturdy shoes should already be on your feet or in your on-train bag, of course.

There is a limit with how much preparation would be of any real use if you were in a freak accident. But the more common accidents--cutting yourself, getting a nasty splinter, twisting an ankle, needing Immodium because you ate something funky--all of those more quotidien problems will make you glad you have a first aid kit. (If you don't have a good sharp paring knife with a handy cover, google Surlatable and look for their very cheap such knives. They will cost under 10 bucks, and you'll want one for your kitchen use as well as for traveling.)

 

[WaterLevel]

Most important? Situational Awareness.
Where is the nearest exit. How does the emergency window open. Where are the instructions for opening the doors in an emergency. Where are the emergency tools stored in your train car. Where is the fire extinguisher.

As for personal items, how close are your shoes, your flashlight. Could you locate these in the dark?

 

[Exvalley]

Probably the most important thing is to have proper clothing. I’m not worried about an accident, but there are a variety of reasons why I could be stuck somewhere. If this accident happened in the winter I wonder how many passengers would have suffered from exposure.

 

[Steve4031]

Make sure you have an extra batter pack for your cell phone. That plus being dressed appropriately would be my suggestions.

in the winter I am not a bundle up type person. I rode the EB in winter once, and would not have been dressed warmly enough even if I could find my jacket after a derailment.

I’m probably still not going to bundle up.

 

[Asher]

I think most of us pack with a sense of What if. After that you need a cool head, common sense and lot of luck.

 

[Eric in East County]

Our thanks to all of you who have responded so far. While we don’t anticipate ever being involved in a derailment or having our coach turn over, here are a few of the suggestions that we plan to follow up on:

We will be adding a small, sharp knife to our travel essentials.

We will be adding a few of the larger blood clotting patches to the first aid items that we bring with us.

Before retiring for the night, we will now take steps to ensure that we can quickly find our flashlight and our shoes in the dark.

We can see where a whistle might come in handy for letting people know where we are, particularly in the dark.

Thanks again.

Eric & Pat

 

[Maglev]

Finding one's shoes in the dark seems important in a nighttime accident, but exactly how does one do this if the train car rolls over? Possibly tying the shoelaces to something might keep them secure...

 

[AmtrakBlue]

Finding one's shoes in the dark seems important in a nighttime accident, but exactly how does one do this if the train car rolls over? Possibly tying the shoelaces to something might keep them secure...

I put my shoes in the closet at night.

 

[Saddleshoes]

I was actually thinking about this very subject last night. As an old boy scout I tend to be prepared when I travel anyway. So I did a mental check list and decided to change one thing in my travel back pack.

I will changing out my buck knife for a utility knife with a rescue glass breaking tool build into the handle.

 

[BCL]

Make sure you have an extra batter pack for your cell phone. That plus being dressed appropriately would be my suggestions.

in the winter I am not a bundle up type person. I rode the EB in winter once, and would not have been dressed warmly enough even if I could find my jacket after a derailment.

I’m probably still not going to bundle up.

There's a saying in search and rescue and outdoor recreation circles regarding finding people suffering from hypothermia - "cotton kills". It's a bit dramatic, but often they find that those wearing cotton clothing suffer quickly from hypothermia after sweating in cold conditions and then cooling down. The cotton just soaks up all that moisture and then takes away too much heat from the skin.

But then there's the issue with synthetic fibers when there's fire. I've heard of polyester fabrics just melting when they're on fire and the victim can't seem to remove the clothing once it's stuck to skin. Even so, I don't really think too much about what I wear other than it's comfortable. And when it's cold, I prefer the comfort of synthetics keeping me warm and dry. Not sure what the chances are of fire on Amtrak in a passenger car, but there's certainly that possibility on an aircraft.

The one thing that might be an issue in a train collision or derailment is head trauma from getting thrown around and hitting something hard. The brain is the most vulnerable part of the body, although I'm not sure anyone would really want to ride a train wearing a motorcycle helmet.

 

[Devil's Advocate]

If you want to be prepared for a major accident stock your vehicle with first aid supplies, window breaker, fire extinguisher, torch, blankets, potable water, nonperishable sustenance, reflectors, etc. By the time you're on the train 99% of the threat to life and limb has already passed.

 

[happycamper]

We have traveled for 30 years mainly cruise ships and 30 years ago there wasn't much (and still isn't) available onboard and you are in an ocean so no Wlamart so I always pack an essentials backpack/case that includes first aid stuff and medicine and all little things that you could miss. Since I take trains to cruises I always have it at my seat. It also has water - I always have at least one water bottle full at my seat in case the train is stopped and things shut down. Also always have snack food with me in case - also the cafe car is shut down at night. On Amtrak we were on the bus from Bakersfield to LAX as the train ended in Bakersfield. The bus broke down on the hwy in Burbank. As you can imagine the people onboard were not good travelers and some even stormed off the bus onto the hwy and left. Not helpful. But it was nice to have water and snacks when stuck. And as someone else said there is clothes. As I wear layers when traveling and as they come off go in essentials backpack and then can be put back on. Been stuck on train on freight tracks off the beaten path for over 12 hours outside Chicago. Everything was running on the train and cafe open but you just dont know. Also good to keep phone at least 50% full..... Keep the data turned off when you cant use it and it saves the battery. And as someone else said have small LED flashlights. In the case on the train derailment if in a car standing up would grab the backpack on the way out but if not and got out quick my id, credit card, cash and such is always on my person when on the train even when sleeping...

 

[happycamper]

A flashlight is always useful, even without an emergency--for looking under the seat to be sure you haven't left anything there, for example. A sharp knife with a cover is handy for slicing apples and cheese, but also for cutting through duct tape to McGyver into something useful. And a small first aid kit is something I never travel without--including small ziptop packets of OTC medications, a tiny tube of Neosporin, tweezers, an ACE bandage, a tiny eyeglass repair kit, and various sizes of Bandaids. Sturdy shoes should already be on your feet or in your on-train bag, of course.

There is a limit with how much preparation would be of any real use if you were in a freak accident. But the more common accidents--cutting yourself, getting a nasty splinter, twisting an ankle, needing Immodium because you ate something funky--all of those more quotidien problems will make you glad you have a first aid kit. (If you don't have a good sharp paring knife with a handy cover, google Surlatable and look for their very cheap such knives. They will cost under 10 bucks, and you'll want one for your kitchen use as well as for traveling.)

I got off train late at night really tired in Nebraska just because I wanted to say I set foot in Nebraska and then tripped on a curb and twisted my ankle... Well the next day we were getting off the train for 2 days in the Rockies.. But the train was so cold I left my ankle sticking out and it stayed ice cold LOL LOL and I also had an ace bandage to wrap around it. So first aid stuff comes in real handy!! I started carrying essential stuff when long time ago back when cruises didn't have anything on board to buy I got a cold and there was no cold medicine so spent 2 hours in the Cayman Islands looking for cold medicine - not the way you want to spend time in the Caymans! I learned and now carry stuff traveling. by the way I may not have had a need too many times for what I carry but I have helped others that didn't bring things with what I have.

 

[Cal]

If you want to be prepared for a major accident stock your vehicle with first aid supplies, window breaker, fire extinguisher, torch, blankets, potable water, nonperishable sustenance, reflectors, etc. By the time you're on the train 99% of the threat to life and limb has already passed.

Same with air travel!

 

[Cal]

I got off train late at night really tired in Nebraska just because I wanted to say I set foot in Nebraska and then tripped on a curb and twisted my ankle... Well the next day we were getting off the train for 2 days in the Rockies.. But the train was so cold I left my ankle sticking out and it stayed ice cold LOL LOL and I also had an ace bandage to wrap around it. So first aid stuff comes in real handy!! I started carrying essential stuff when long time ago back when cruises didn't have anything on board to buy I got a cold and there was no cold medicine so spent 2 hours in the Cayman Islands looking for cold medicine - not the way you want to spend time in the Caymans! I learned and now carry stuff traveling. by the way I may not have had a need too many times for what I carry but I have helped others that didn't bring things with what I have.

Sounds like something I would do

 

[UserNameRequired]

I was actually thinking about this very subject last night. As an old boy scout I tend to be prepared when I travel anyway. So I did a mental check list and decided to change one thing in my travel back pack.

I will changing out my buck knife for a utility knife with a rescue glass breaking tool build into the handle.

Mentioning descretion may be called for with knifes, I posted before but likely moderated, trying again with no link to a certain US passenger train organizations webpage of policy for that to see if the link was the problem, or whether I am so new everything I post is stopped…

 

[Eric in East County]

Last September, we started this discussion thread to find out what experienced train travelers bring with them to help them get through unexpected emergency situations. We don’t recall that anyone mentioned bringing along a TACTICAL PEN. We just recently learned about them. There is a ton of information already posted online about tactical pens and how to use them. In addition to functioning as a ball point pen, in an emergency, it can also be used to break out an automobile window (or, we assume, a railroad passenger car window or bedroom door window.) In an extreme self-defense situation, a trained person can also use one to fend off an attacker. Since a tactical pen is a ball point pen, it is not classified as a weapon and can be taken through an airport TSA checkpoint and, we assume, be legally carried onboard an Amtrak train.

 

[PVD]

Mylar emergency blankets are inexpensive and take up very little space. Good to keep a few in the glovebox for winter driving anyway. I don't worry so much about the windows, since many are designed to facilitate removal. I have a small rescue tool in the car, it incorporates the carbide tip to break windows and a blade to cut seatbelts.