Monorail Accident

tshoster

New Member
I have been reading the posts on this since I just found out about the accident a little while ago. It is a sad thing to happen.
Many are wondering how this could happen. One item to look at is the recent commuter train crash in Washington DC. It is starting to come out that the safety system had been penetrated by a virus. The DC metro line uses a similar sytsem as Disney. It may even be the same system. If it could happen there it is possible that the same virus could have penetrated the Disney system. This could cause the complete shut down of the safety syystem similar to the DC crash.
We will know more after the investigation is completed. Which will have to be made puplic since it will involve Federal agencies if nothing more than OSHA.
I still consider the Monorail the safest mass transit system in the world. I will still ride it and hopefully they won't stop the cockpit rides. I really enjoy them and have learned a lot from the drivers and just sitting there. I was actually on one when they went through the safety checks after putting another train in front of us. Just remember it is a machine and things do break sometimes with catastrophic results.
I have rambled too long.
 

Lee

Adventurer
I'm starting to get a headache from trying to sort this all out.
I'm getting some conflicting information and will probably be quite a while getting a good hold on it.

Couple points:
- So, if the theory about pink backing up is correct, it would have to have backed pretty much all the way through the station. The driver of Pink didn't see that?
- Even if Pink was on some sort of override to back up and change lines, wouldn't the Purple, not on override, have picked it up as an intrusion into the zone causing a stop (If indeed the MAPO system was working)?
- The photo below does not show the trains over the tram stop. They are meeting in the center of the plaza between the ticket windows and the mono stations. I don't think that is a normal place for trains to stop, so it doesn't make sense that Purple was holding there. Seems like Purple had to be in motion towards the station at the time of impact. Due to that, I am sticking to the best info I have at the moment and that seems to indicate that Purple was the one that was in the wrong.
- Could it be both? Purple pulling in from the south and Pink backing up onto the wrong line on override? Or perhaps was Pink stopped just before the station and Purple ran into it there?

I have a feeling that when all is said and done, none of our individual theories will be correct, but it will instead be a mixture of all of them.
 

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Tom Morrow

Well-Known Member
All I know IMO from what I saw in my 8 months there, frontline employees lacked basic disaster training, and in many cases most had no clue what to do. Here is a good story to show that, I'll be vague but there was a call that there might be an issue, an issue that was more then likely false but at the time being less then a year after 9/11 needed to be addressed. This occurred mid day. Non of the frontline staff had a clue what to do, even when told what to do they were still clueless. You would think that there would be training on different scenarios for each area. You could sit in a room and listen about first aid and blood-born pathogens for hours, and take pages of tests, but without real world training and practice when something occurs most people lock up and just fall back to the "its not my job" or "I'll go sweep now" mentality. It was sad when we had break downs, and a CP like myself who has been there months would be the first one grabbing a radio and getting managers to the area or engineers while life long CMs had no clue what they should do.

I'm not sure where you worked, but at my work location it is nothing like this. Anyone who has had more than a few weeks of experience would know what to do in unusual situations.
 

mikeymouse

Well-Known Member
In regards to Reedy Creek, speaking from a public safety background, I'm sure they did everything they could. RCES require a lot of training. Nothing is "routine" anymore, especially post-9/11. Even with normal vehicle rescue, no training could have prepared them for this. Rest assured that Austin did not suffer. Judging from the amount of damage, he would have been killed instantly.
 

BadTigger

Active Member
I'm starting to get a headache from trying to sort this all out.
I'm getting some conflicting information and will probably be quite a while getting a good hold on it.

Couple points:
- So, if the theory about pink backing up is correct, it would have to have backed pretty much all the way through the station. The driver of Pink didn't see that?
- Even if Pink was on some sort of override to back up and change lines, wouldn't the Purple, not on override, have picked it up as an intrusion into the zone causing a stop (If indeed the MAPO system was working)?
- The photo below does not show the trains over the tram stop. They are meeting in the center of the plaza between the ticket windows and the mono stations. I don't think that is a normal place for trains to stop, so it doesn't make sense that Purple was holding there. Seems like Purple had to be in motion towards the station at the time of impact. Due to that, I am sticking to the best info I have at the moment and that seems to indicate that Purple was the one that was in the wrong.
- Could it be both? Purple pulling in from the south and Pink backing up onto the wrong line on override? Or perhaps was Pink stopped just before the station and Purple ran into it there?

I have a feeling that when all is said and done, none of our individual theories will be correct, but it will instead be a mixture of all of them.

I don't think both were moving, If purple was moving forward, the system as you have said would have detected the train in-front of it, leading to the good assumption that purple was stopped. Either your confusing yourself, but its much more logical that Pink was backing up with the driver not being able to see that Purple was behind him. I mean if Purple was in the wrong then that means it was done on purpose because at that point you would obviously see there was a train in-front of you. And that just doesn't seem to be the case.
 

cdunbar

Active Member
Video deleted per WDWmagic's request

While this is a tragedy I think its BS that the castmember tried to block the guy from taking video footage. He had every right to tape and document the incident. It's not like he was standing in the way or anything.
Actually, I'm pretty sure you're wrong since Walt Disney World is private property. They make the rules. But not only is there the fact this indivdual is on private property, there is also the fact that this is just plain uncuth. Even if someone had not unfortuately passed away, but there had just been an accident the person should not of taken the video. I mean ok if they were taping their family getting on the monorail and their video caught it ok whatever but once you see what is happening shut your darn camera off, and grab your family and run cause no one needs to see something like that.
 

Lee

Adventurer
I don't think both were moving, If purple was moving forward, the system as you have said would have detected the train in-front of it, leading to the good assumption that purple was stopped.
Two things:
- You are assuming that the system was functioning properly.
- Why would purple have been sitting right over that plaza? I don't think that is a hold point for an incoming mono.
 

PhotoDave219

Well-Known Member
I'm starting to get a headache from trying to sort this all out.
I'm getting some conflicting information and will probably be quite a while getting a good hold on it.

Couple points:
- So, if the theory about pink backing up is correct, it would have to have backed pretty much all the way through the station. The driver of Pink didn't see that?
- Even if Pink was on some sort of override to back up and change lines, wouldn't the Purple, not on override, have picked it up as an intrusion into the zone causing a stop (If indeed the MAPO system was working)?
- The photo below does not show the trains over the tram stop. They are meeting in the center of the plaza between the ticket windows and the mono stations. I don't think that is a normal place for trains to stop, so it doesn't make sense that Purple was holding there. Seems like Purple had to be in motion towards the station at the time of impact. Due to that, I am sticking to the best info I have at the moment and that seems to indicate that Purple was the one that was in the wrong.
- Could it be both? Purple pulling in from the south and Pink backing up onto the wrong line on override? Or perhaps was Pink stopped just before the station and Purple ran into it there?

I have a feeling that when all is said and done, none of our individual theories will be correct, but it will instead be a mixture of all of them.

Lee,

From what i can remember, the photos that were on CNN (that same screencap i posted way back on page 1 or 2) seems to be a normal hold point but I don't 100% know. All we know is that photo was taken from the South and West side of the TTC. (Then somehow they got moved into the station.)

Every source i have (6 so far) is saying that Pink went backwards, inexplicably did not switch onto the spur, through the station and struck the stationary Purple over the TTC guest area. (Also somewhat corroborates the eyewitness that CNN had on TV at 7AM, who roughly said people ran for cover from under the beam as debris fell after he got off the ferryboat)
 

BadTigger

Active Member
Two things:
- You are assuming that the system was functioning properly.
- Why would purple have been sitting right over that plaza? I don't think that is a hold point for an incoming mono.

That is true I am assuming things were in working order.
I agree I think the hold point is much further back. My theory is Purple was in the station and then Pink pushed it back to the plaza, since that is only about 200-300 feet.

I just looked at the map, I remember on the MK line a hold occurring outside the Poly, if they use roughly the same math that would put the hold point out by the parking area and/or along Worlds Dr.
 

lazyboy97o

Well-Known Member
Two things:
- You are assuming that the system was functioning properly.
- Why would purple have been sitting right over that plaza? I don't think that is a hold point for an incoming mono.
It could be that Monorail Purple overran its block and that the MAPO system stopped it just south of the station where Monorail Pink then collided into it.

Lee,

From what i can remember, the photos that were on CNN (that same screencap i posted way back on page 1 or 2) seems to be a normal hold point but I don't 100% know. All we know is that photo was taken from the South and West side of the TTC. (Then somehow they got moved into the station.)
If you look at the bottom of the image you can see the bus stop covering and the backside of the gift shop. That means the monorails were south of the station and north of the ticket booths. The hold position, from my memory, is south of the ticket booths.
 

BadTigger

Active Member
If you look at the bottom of the image you can see the bus stop covering and the backside of the gift shop. That means the monorails were south of the station and north of the ticket booths. The hold position, from my memory, is south of the ticket booths.

Here is where that photo was http://www.bing.com/maps/?v=2&encType=1&sp=Point.nr0rnv861hpq_This is where that photo is____
Just click aerial. If you notice in the picture you see the bus over hangs which are along Topiary Ln
 

Cruiser237

Member
That is true I am assuming things were in working order.
I agree I think the hold point is much further back. My theory is Purple was in the station and then Pink pushed it back to the plaza, since that is only about 200-300 feet.

I just looked at the map, I remember on the MK line a hold occurring outside the Poly, if they use roughly the same math that would put the hold point out by the parking area and/or along Worlds Dr.



I remember when we were heading back from Epcot one night..the holding point we waited at for the next monorail to depart from to the TTC was over the MK parking
 

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