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  • Engineer, seeking help from you guys. PLEASE!!

  • Discussion related to BNSF operations. Official site: BNSF.COM
Discussion related to BNSF operations. Official site: BNSF.COM

Moderator: Komachi

 #677117  by trainer444n4
 
I am an engineer for BNSF and have ran into a crummy situation. As we were returning home our train hit a soft spot in the rails. When we did my upper back popped three times and my neck and back muscles tightened up. At first I just thought that I pulled a muscle. Well, after a week of no improvement in pain or range of motion I went to the ER to find that I have a herniated disk. the problem is that it was real early morning, i was really tired and because I didnt realize the severity of the injury I didnt take any note of where the soft spot that caused the injury was. I am trying to find a way to see what and when form A's were issued on a specific subdivision so that I can jog my memory and try to remember where the incident occured. I know alot of you guys know more about railroading than I do. So, I was wondering if anyone had any Ideas?
Thanks,
Trainer
 #677214  by 3rdrail
 
Trainer- For what it's worth, your story makes more sense not knowing the exact location, particularly when it wasn't reported immediately. Can you at least make an educated guess as to the approximate location based upon time back to your base or another crew members recollection ? I would not waste any time submitting a claim while you are trying to find the precise location. Good luck.
 #677219  by trainer444n4
 
3rdrail wrote:Trainer- For what it's worth, your story makes more sense not knowing the exact location, particularly when it wasn't reported immediately. Can you at least make an educated guess as to the approximate location based upon time back to your base or another crew members recollection ? I would not waste any time submitting a claim while you are trying to find the precise location. Good luck.
Im really having a hard time recalling the location with any type of accuracy. I never really thought much about it until I found out it was a herniated disk. That was a week after it happened and its just like all the trips kinda run together (in my memory) ya know. Its hard to distinguish what happened on which trip and when. does that make any sense?. Its kinda hard to understand unless you have ran over and over the same territory. I began filing the injury report as soon as I learned of the herniated disk. Are you a railroad employee yourself? Im new to this board, but it seems pretty cool. I wonder if alot of people on this board are RR employees?
Thanks 3drail,
Trainer444n4
 #677237  by 3rdrail
 
No, I'm not a railroader (I just play one in my train room), but I know very well the situation that you are facing. I'm a policeman who recieved a herniated disc with nerve impingement as a result of being rammed by an automobile in my cruiser and an assault while making an arrest where I was picked up and driven into the street head-first. All that I can say is to document it in any way that you can. Did you mention feeling a twinge at the time that it happened to anybody ? Did you have a physical perhaps just prior to the accident, so that a physician can put a time span on the injury ? Back up your claim with physician's statements. Make sure that you don't neglect your after-care for the injury as aside from the obvious, all this will be looked at in a review. It is what it is, so my advice is to be as honest as possible and enlist as much assistance from persons who can help you as well. I know the syndrome of "it's nothing, I'll see how I feel tomorrow", and as I always told my patrolmen, "if it hurt, go to the hospital". Having said that, I once got mistaken for a football by a professional football player who I was involved in a foot pursuit with, said "it's nothing", and woke up the next day with a hand twice as large as normal. (broken thumb) The caper that put me out on disability found me in an ambulance being taken to and admitted at Boston Medical Center, so there wasn't much question about that. My gut tells me that if they want to screw with you, they'll give you a hard time. If they are true professionals, you have a good record for reporting major injuries, and you have records to prove your injury, they won't. Let your union fight for you as well, and if it's career threatening, perhaps legal counsel as well (provided by the union, I hope). I hope that it works out for you, my friend. Let us know how you're progressing.
 #677683  by Xponder
 
trainer444n4 wrote:I am an engineer for BNSF and have ran into a crummy situation. As we were returning home our train hit a soft spot in the rails. When we did my upper back popped three times and my neck and back muscles tightened up. At first I just thought that I pulled a muscle. Well, after a week of no improvement in pain or range of motion I went to the ER to find that I have a herniated disk. the problem is that it was real early morning, i was really tired and because I didnt realize the severity of the injury I didnt take any note of where the soft spot that caused the injury was. I am trying to find a way to see what and when form A's were issued on a specific subdivision so that I can jog my memory and try to remember where the incident occured. I know alot of you guys know more about railroading than I do. So, I was wondering if anyone had any Ideas?
Thanks,
Trainer
Trainer: For what its worth you should call the BLET or UTU designated legal counsel. Document as much as you can about what had happened and take the advice given by legal counsel. Don't admit anything to RR. Seek medical attention and report the incident to BNSF after you have talked to the legal counsel. Don't wait, do it now!

One such legal counsel for the UTU is: http://www.rcvpc.com/ Rossi, Cox, Vucinovish, Flaskamp; 800-325-4014.

I am a Conductor for BNSF.
..
Last edited by Xponder on Tue Jun 02, 2009 5:54 am, edited 1 time in total.
 #677692  by RedLantern
 
Just a thought, if you can think of which line and a halfway general idea of where the incident took place, unless I'm misunderstanding what you meant. you might be able to ask a track foreman if he knows of any soft spots in that area. He might be able to give you a milepost.
 #686470  by poptheclutch
 
I am a BNSF engineer also. You need to contact BLET designated legal counsel immediately. If you've already reported the injury to the company, make sure you have a copy of the report when you call the attorney. Don't talk to the claim agent ! If you don't know any of your local designated counsel, ask your local chairman or check the blet web site. They are all listed on there. Good Luck.