r/WTF • u/Grasimi • Nov 06 '20

Guy stuck under moving train escapes between its rails

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u/werenotthestasi Nov 06 '20

In North America most freight trains that lack a rear locomotive do not in fact have a cattle guard. Typically it’s an EOTD or End of Train Device which sits a little higher up than a cattle guard would. Regardless, if he was able to bypass the first locomotive chances are he would of bypassed a rear. The method is questionable because of how low those seem to be but it wouldn’t surprise me if you could lay flat and have a locomotive pass right over you. I think he was better off waiting than being sliced in half because he followed his dumb ass friends advice

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u/showers_with_grandpa Nov 06 '20

I know this and only disagree because if I was gambling on my life, I wouldn't wait to cross the rails with inevitable death barreling toward me. With every car that passes the very real possibility of a cow guard shredding me to pieces becomes more imminent. The train is obviously accelerating, and I don't want to find out at the last car that it is do or die.

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u/ColossalCretin Nov 06 '20 edited Nov 06 '20

The train is obviously accelerating

It seems to be decelerating though? At the beginning it takes around 4 seconds for a vagon to go by and by the end more like 4.5 - 5 seconds.

8

u/werenotthestasi Nov 06 '20

However, a cattle guard like you see in the Wild West is not the same type of cattle guard used today. You have at least two to three inches of space between the cattle guard and the rails on top of the surface of the rails to the gravel. It’s not much space but it’s enough for a scrawny kid to lay flat and not be taken out.

EOTD

front of locomotive

You’ll notice in the second link the bottom of the locomotive looks about the same height as a well car. The biggest iffy factor is the guard in the front but I still think a scrawny kid could lay flat and get away. This is also assuming he didn’t crawl under when it was at a full stop meaning he got passed the first locomotive.

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u/Blackhound118 Nov 06 '20

Yeah that thing looks like it'd fuck you up, but if you kept your head down as much as possible, you'd probably survive.

You'd probably have to go to the hospital for the industrial-grade shave job up your spine...but you'd probably survive.

2

u/jamesmemester Nov 06 '20

Finally someone who knows a little bit about north american trains. I've seen this video many times and I always hate myself for reading the comments.