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CSX sued for electricution in Rochester?

Discussion of the operations of CSX Transportation, from 1980 to the present. Official site can be found here: CSXT.COM.

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 #3753  by roadster
 
Yep, you read it right, a California man jogging with friends fell last summer along the "West Shore" and grabbed a low hanging wire to help raise himself, and was electricuted. Family is sueing. I always wonder to what point are we responsible for our own actions anymore.

 #5093  by clearblock
 
It look like all the ambulance chasing lawyers are targeting CSX after the bad publicity over the grade crossing situation in Rochester. Now, a guy that was hit while riding his ATV on the CSX tracks on the bridge over I390 on the Rochester Sub has filed a lawsuit. He claims he had his back to the train and the engineer failed to give him adequate warning to get off the tracks and CSX should have been aware that people regularly trespass on that bridge.

Here is a link to the story:

http://www.democratandchronicle.com/new ... news.shtml

 #5255  by Xplorer2000
 
roadster wrote: I always wonder to what point are we responsible for our own actions anymore.
As long as there are people who can somehow find a way to profit from others misfortune, probably never....
I'm curious though....playing "Devil's Advocate" here for a minute...Was it actually a CSX related cable the poor fool latched on to, or a public utility cable. Not to defend CSX, ESPESCIALLY if they're at fault, but Utilities DO run cables and power lines along railroad ROWs. I'm also suprised that something carrying that much juice would be hanging that low, or be that poorly insulated, that someone merely grabbing it could be electrocuted.

 #5280  by clearblock
 
The West Shore electrocution was reportedly due to a CSX signal cable. Some signal power is 480V so you have to be careful of signal pole line wires. The wires are usually insulated but the insulation may be old and brittle. If you tamper with it and pull on it the insulation may crack and you come in contact with the live wire. Even tampering with a pole guy wire is dangerous because it can come loose and come in contact with a high voltage wire.

Some older pole lines may have bare wires on the glass insulators on the poles.

 #5379  by charlie6017
 
A couple weeks ago, I attended a presentation put on by RG&E for work--it covered what to do with downed power lines, how people get electricuted, etc. Even if lines are properly insulated, if a person grabs onto one, that person will be zapped because people are not grounded. It really was a good program.

 #5434  by XRails
 
We really ought to have an indemnity system here in the US like they do in the UK, whereby you must pay the defendant's attorney fees if you sue and lose. Honestly, not only is it giving millions to greedy, incompetant, and just plain stupid people (you shouldn't be allowed to sue for damages incurred while you were in the process of breaking the law, case in point our hapless ATV driver), it also forces businesses to hold everyones' hand, impose ridiculous rules, and require the signing of mountains of paperwork to authorize the simplest of things. Even so, get a good enough lawyer, and you can sue for just about anything, waiver or not.

 #10864  by O-6-O
 
charlie6017 wrote:A couple weeks ago, I attended a presentation put on by RG&E for work--it covered what to do with downed power lines, how people get electricuted, etc. Even if lines are properly insulated, if a person grabs onto one, that person will be zapped because people are not grounded. It really was a good program.

HUH? If your not grounded how does electricity flow thru ? It ALWAYS
seeks the path of least resistance. If you are that path you will
get zapped. NOT COOL.

STEAM ON

 #11309  by charlie6017
 
Words of the RG&E spokesman: "Water is a conductor, and people are made up of 70% water, just as the planet is.....thus we as people are conductors".

 #13759  by Ken W2KB
 
0-6-0 is right; the person grabbing a live wire gets zapped because he or she completes the path to ground. That's why birds can alight on a wire without harm, they are not grounded. Note that many utility and other high voltage wires are bare, insulation is of no value for safety at higher voltages since it would have to be very very thick to be effective.

A good example of how grounding makes all the difference: The transmission tower group in the company I work for do maintenance directly on wires that are energized at 500,000 Volts -- live. They go up to the wire in a bucket truck platform that is insulated from ground (fiberglass loooong boom) and actually connect a cable from their clothing to the live 500,000 Volt wire. Their bodies are then energized at 500,000 Volts the same as the wire, but since there is no path to ground (and they stay a minimum number of feet from the grounded towers and adjacent phase wires to ensure against an arc) they are not harmed or even uncomfortable as they do their work.

 #13800  by O-6-O
 
KEN w2kb, I saw a show on Disc Channel i think it was on high tension
power lines and the men work on them. Believe me you have my
utmost respect. Safety procedures not withstanding, the idea of having
1/2 million volts potential in my body scares the living S*#& out of me.
NO THANKS. I've seen pics of high voltage electrical injurys,made me
sick.
Pure water by the way is a good insulator, it only conducts
because of impureitys.

STEAM ON

 #27207  by dkgrubb
 
Anyway, the point is, this guy who thinks he can sue CSX for getting injured while tresspassing needs a belt run over his back side for being so stupid. It makes me think I should be able to sue Playboy because I have carpal-tunnel syndrome. Give me a break. People need to be responsible for their actions. If someone is going to tresspass, and not use due care, then they deserve to get hurt.

 #28029  by roadster
 
Just an FYI remember the victim died as a result of the eletricution. The family is bringing the suit. I certainly don't condone trespassing for any reason. However, as an employee of CSX, neither can I condone poor maintainance and unsafe conditions. I must consider the "what if", I was working at this site and fell and grab the wire in an attempt to catch myself from falling and injuring myself. The wire in this incident wasn't hanging from a pole, but was laying on the ground apparently left abandoned when new lines were buried. Some one didn't disconnect it at that time. It is not uncommon to see old telegraph poles with wires attached running for a couple miles here and there, with downed trees laying across them most broken and laying about left unattended. Walking a train "in emergency", changing out a knuckle, or broken air hose in the middle of the night presents challenges of their own, now add the concern of "live" electrical wires laying about.

 #28113  by charlie6017
 
Sounds to me like the family took the opportunity to try to make some money off the situation of the deceased man. One of those vulture lawyers probably sought out a family member and fed 'em a bunch of lines.

Now back to my playboy.............

 #43354  by fglk
 
:(
Last edited by fglk on Thu Aug 19, 2004 7:04 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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