It is insulting to allege that Steven Smalls, Jr. did anything wrong. He was nothing but professional during this incident, and in some respects went above and beyond, at the risk of his safety, and possibly life, to help evacuate Car 4333.
From just what we know- and there is probably more- these were his actions that night.
He was in contact with Conductor Larkin the entire time, and properly declared an emergency to rail traffic control.
As soon as the train stopped, he emerged from the engineer's compartment and justifiably ordered everyone out of the head car.
He guided many passengers to the exits, and along with some other passengers, physically assisted those that could not evacuate on their own. Stories recount that he even carried one or two on his back to the door, where they were passed down to ambulatory passengers.
He attempted to search car 4333 after it was evacuated, knowing that at least two out of the five fatalities (Walter Liedtke and an unknown victim, not Eric Vandercar) were possibly still alive, before being driven out of the car by intense heat and choking smoke.
Smalls then climbed into the second car, 4332, and attempted in vain to force the rear barrel door and save Walter Liedtke, who was seated in the back row. [Liedtke suffered a fatal brain hemorrhage when he was struck in the head by debris. He was near death, if not already deceased at that point]
Despite smoke inhalation and non-critical burns, Smalls stayed near the train, and along with Conductor Larkin, assisted the responders with the initial incident size-up. Smalls was among the last to go to Westchester Medical Center, arriving there nearly 2 hours after the collision.
Many times, unfortunately, a collision can be career ending for train crew members, even when, as in this case, they did everything by the book and more.
I know not everyone has read the NTSB docket and final Railroad Accident Report, but a lot of the opposing claims are complete BS, and can be disproved by the official, objective evidence within.
No, the train could not have stopped sooner. Smalls saw Ellen Brody pulling into the grade crossing and immediately engaged the emergency brake.
The speed of Train 659 was within regulations, and prudent for the conditions at the time.
All gates and flashers were functional at the crossing, and all required road signs and markers were appropriately placed.
That just leaves human failure on the part of the driver who, "for undetermined reasons" as the NTSB said, was distracted and/or disoriented up until the time the gate first hit her SUV. I can accept that scenario as a plausible, though serious, and not necessarily fatal, error. What is incomprehensible to me, is how did that distraction/ disorientation lead to pulling forward into the crossing? We will never know.
From just what we know- and there is probably more- these were his actions that night.
He was in contact with Conductor Larkin the entire time, and properly declared an emergency to rail traffic control.
As soon as the train stopped, he emerged from the engineer's compartment and justifiably ordered everyone out of the head car.
He guided many passengers to the exits, and along with some other passengers, physically assisted those that could not evacuate on their own. Stories recount that he even carried one or two on his back to the door, where they were passed down to ambulatory passengers.
He attempted to search car 4333 after it was evacuated, knowing that at least two out of the five fatalities (Walter Liedtke and an unknown victim, not Eric Vandercar) were possibly still alive, before being driven out of the car by intense heat and choking smoke.
Smalls then climbed into the second car, 4332, and attempted in vain to force the rear barrel door and save Walter Liedtke, who was seated in the back row. [Liedtke suffered a fatal brain hemorrhage when he was struck in the head by debris. He was near death, if not already deceased at that point]
Despite smoke inhalation and non-critical burns, Smalls stayed near the train, and along with Conductor Larkin, assisted the responders with the initial incident size-up. Smalls was among the last to go to Westchester Medical Center, arriving there nearly 2 hours after the collision.
Many times, unfortunately, a collision can be career ending for train crew members, even when, as in this case, they did everything by the book and more.
I know not everyone has read the NTSB docket and final Railroad Accident Report, but a lot of the opposing claims are complete BS, and can be disproved by the official, objective evidence within.
No, the train could not have stopped sooner. Smalls saw Ellen Brody pulling into the grade crossing and immediately engaged the emergency brake.
The speed of Train 659 was within regulations, and prudent for the conditions at the time.
All gates and flashers were functional at the crossing, and all required road signs and markers were appropriately placed.
That just leaves human failure on the part of the driver who, "for undetermined reasons" as the NTSB said, was distracted and/or disoriented up until the time the gate first hit her SUV. I can accept that scenario as a plausible, though serious, and not necessarily fatal, error. What is incomprehensible to me, is how did that distraction/ disorientation lead to pulling forward into the crossing? We will never know.
Michael Sheehy
Fire Science & Safety Studies
Firefighter - ICS 300 - New York State Incident Safety Officer - Principles of Fire Investigation
Research Project LAST STOP VALHALLA, a study of "high severity, low frequency" incidents.
Fire Science & Safety Studies
Firefighter - ICS 300 - New York State Incident Safety Officer - Principles of Fire Investigation
Research Project LAST STOP VALHALLA, a study of "high severity, low frequency" incidents.