The conductor on a Union Pacific freight train saw disaster coming and jumped from the engine seconds before his train collided head-on with another train in a mountain canyon Thursday morning.
Other crew members were not as fortunate: One engineer was killed and another engineer and a conductor remained hospitalized in critical condition Friday morning.Some 24 freight cars remained stranded Friday along a portion of the Union Pacific line between Los Angeles and Salt Lake City near the Nevada-Utah border. Amtrak passengers whose trains use the route blocked by the crash were moved to other trains, buses or airlines.
Robert A. Franklin, 39, of Henderson, was the conductor on the westbound train. "The westbound train had received signal indications telling them they were going on a sidetrack," said Union Pacific spokesman John Bromley. "After they saw the signals telling them what to do they saw the headlight of the oncoming train and Mr. Franklin jumped."
Switches on the tracks are controlled remotely by dispatchers in Omaha.
Michael A. Smith, 55, Las Vegas, an engineer on Franklin's train, was killed in the crash. Another engineer on the train, Larry J. Harding, 51, of Las Vegas, remained in critical condition Friday at the University Medical Center in Las Vegas.
Roger J. Sullenberger, 49, Las Vegas, remained hospitalized in critical condition Friday in St. George.
There were 84 empty coal cars on the train bound for Provo and a similar number of cars on the westbound train that was pulling a load of coal from Provo to Los Angeles. Six engines and 18 coal cars derailed in the crash.
The speed of both trains and other information about the trains' operations are recorded on a device similar to a commercial airliner's "black box." Bromley said information from the trains' data recorders will assist in the crash investigation.
The National Transportation Safety Board and the railroad are conducting independent investigations. Crews are working around the clock to clear the wreckage and reopen the tracks. "They may be open by midnight tonight, maybe sooner," Bromley said Friday.
Until then, high-priority freight trains are being routed on Santa Fe Railroad routes.
In Salt Lake City, Amtrak ticket agent Martha Akemon said Amtrak is making other arrangements for rail passengers until the route is reopened. "We reaccommodated first-class passengers. It was their choice whether they would stay in a hotel or fly. The coach passengers were all offered bus transportation," she said. "We do have a route that goes into northern California that was running and (passengers) could connect through that route if they wanted to."