# Moving Train hit by Tornado - video - pretty spectacular **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [July 10, 2009, 2:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moving-train-hit-by-tornado-video-pretty-spectacular/502560 "2009-07-10T14:55:40Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 16\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![astro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9dc877/32.png) [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2009, 2:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moving-train-hit-by-tornado-video-pretty-spectacular/502560/1 "2009-07-10T14:55:40Z")
[Video here](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=azV5bC2br-Q&feature=related) ---
**Author:** ![billfish678](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7bcc69/32.png) [@billfish678](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/billfish678)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2009, 3:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moving-train-hit-by-tornado-video-pretty-spectacular/502560/2 "2009-07-10T15:46:35Z")
damn, they are right. they DO sound like freight trains 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![El\_Kabong](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/el_kabong/32/496_2.png) [@El\_Kabong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/El_Kabong)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2009, 3:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moving-train-hit-by-tornado-video-pretty-spectacular/502560/3 "2009-07-10T15:50:21Z")
Seeing that tank car, possibly loaded with a flammable substance, coming toward the locomotive with sparks flying everywhere, was fairly heart-attack inducing. ---
**Author:** ![AuntiePam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@AuntiePam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AuntiePam)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2009, 4:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moving-train-hit-by-tornado-video-pretty-spectacular/502560/4 "2009-07-10T16:07:41Z")
Anyone know why a video camera would be mounted on a freight train? Security? ---
**Author:** ![FriarTed](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/friarted/32/1052_2.png) [@FriarTed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FriarTed)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2009, 4:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moving-train-hit-by-tornado-video-pretty-spectacular/502560/5 "2009-07-10T16:36:11Z")
> [@billfish678](#): > > damn, > > they are right. they DO sound like freight trains 🙂 And coincidentally, that freight train sounded just like a tornado. To AuntiePam, maybe it was done for the most expensive episode of Mythbusters ever! Seriously, I wonder how many people got hurt on that train. ---
**Author:** ![Paintcharge](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/paintcharge/32/7946_2.png) [@Paintcharge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Paintcharge)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2009, 4:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moving-train-hit-by-tornado-video-pretty-spectacular/502560/6 "2009-07-10T16:41:14Z")
Wow, I misread that one. I was trying to figure out how Toronto could hit a train… ---
**Author:** ![Rhythmdvl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/85f322/32.png) [@Rhythmdvl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rhythmdvl)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2009, 4:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moving-train-hit-by-tornado-video-pretty-spectacular/502560/7 "2009-07-10T16:50:21Z")
Why would that Pulp Fiction dude need to rob a train? ---
**Author:** ![AuntiePam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@AuntiePam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AuntiePam)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2009, 4:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moving-train-hit-by-tornado-video-pretty-spectacular/502560/8 "2009-07-10T16:51:14Z")
> [@FriarTed](#): > > And coincidentally, that freight train sounded just like a tornado. > > To AuntiePam, maybe it was done for the most expensive episode of Mythbusters ever! > > Seriously, I wonder how many people got hurt on that train. [Five people were injured.](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/January_2008_tornado_outbreak_sequence) It was part of a rare outbreak of tornadoes in January. January! :eek: ---
**Author:** ![VunderBob](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/839c29/32.png) [@VunderBob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/VunderBob)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2009, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moving-train-hit-by-tornado-video-pretty-spectacular/502560/9 "2009-07-10T16:57:25Z")
> [@AuntiePam](#): > > Anyone know why a video camera would be mounted on a freight train? Security? Sort of. It’s an event recorder generally used in investigation of grade crossing accidents, or other things like running a signal. Each locomotive has one, and is always running. This one just happened to be in the railing unit with the cab pointed to the rear of the train. ---
**Author:** ![lieu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c2a13f/32.png) [@lieu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lieu)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2009, 4:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moving-train-hit-by-tornado-video-pretty-spectacular/502560/10 "2009-07-10T16:58:28Z")
> [@AuntiePam](#): > > Anyone know why a video camera would be mounted on a freight train? They were probably worried about getting hit by a rare January meteor and wanted a record of it. ---
**Author:** ![Jenaroph](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e8c25b/32.png) [@Jenaroph](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jenaroph)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2009, 5:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moving-train-hit-by-tornado-video-pretty-spectacular/502560/11 "2009-07-10T17:12:51Z")
> [@VunderBob](#): > > Sort of. It’s an event recorder generally used in investigation of grade crossing accidents, or other things like running a signal. Each locomotive has one, and is always running. This one just happened to be in the railing unit with the cab pointed to the rear of the train. In other words, while the nature of this accident is unusual, this is pretty much exactly the kind of thing it was mounted there for. Cool! ---
**Author:** ![FalconFinder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/51bf81/32.png) [@FalconFinder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FalconFinder)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2009, 5:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moving-train-hit-by-tornado-video-pretty-spectacular/502560/12 "2009-07-10T17:59:45Z")
I saw this and, at first, wasn’t sure it was real. It looked like something from some disaster movie! Impressive bit of video, and I’m really, really, really, glad I wasn’t on that train!! ---
**Author:** ![ShadowFacts](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shadowfacts/32/2934_2.png) [@ShadowFacts](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ShadowFacts)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2009, 7:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moving-train-hit-by-tornado-video-pretty-spectacular/502560/13 "2009-07-10T19:20:32Z")
For whatever reason, I did not find the video particularly scary or spectacular. I guess I was expecting a train car to be picked up and flung about or something. Seemed a little anti-climactic to me. I’m sorry for the people who got hurt, of course - I’m not trying to downplay the seriousness. ---
**Author:** ![Voyager](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voyager/32/133_2.png) [@Voyager](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Voyager)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2009, 7:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moving-train-hit-by-tornado-video-pretty-spectacular/502560/14 "2009-07-10T19:30:50Z")
[This video](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zc4WPbmtK-o&NR=1) is of a train running from a tornado - no wreck, thankfully. I never had thought about trains and tornadoes, but if you’re on a train you’re kind of stuck, aren’t you? ---
**Author:** ![Quartz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quartz/32/267_2.png) [@Quartz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quartz)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2009, 8:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moving-train-hit-by-tornado-video-pretty-spectacular/502560/15 "2009-07-10T20:07:33Z")
Who else clicked on this thread thinking it was going to be about the aircraft called the Tornado? ---
**Author:** ![El\_Kabong](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/el_kabong/32/496_2.png) [@El\_Kabong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/El_Kabong)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2009, 8:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/moving-train-hit-by-tornado-video-pretty-spectacular/502560/16 "2009-07-10T20:44:08Z")
> [@ShadowFacts](#): > > For whatever reason, I did not find the video particularly scary or spectacular. I guess I was expecting a train car to be picked up and flung about or something. Seemed a little anti-climactic to me. I’m sorry for the people who got hurt, of course - I’m not trying to downplay the seriousness. OK, maybe it’s 'cause I used to work for a railroad and know the masses involved, but, I for one thought it was pretty impressive. The tornado apparently overturned the first 12 cars behind the locomotive. Empty weight of an average 50-foot freight car is 50-60,000 pounds; if they were loads, each weighed 200-250,000 pounds. Length of the derailed segment, assuming 50-foot cars: about 600 feet, give or take. The derailed cars were lifted enough by the wind that they apparently left the track without significantly damaging the track structure. The remainder of the train, which might have been anywhere from 30-60 cars or so and appeared to be going at least 30mph, stayed on the rails and continued to roll under its own momentum. The brakes were most likely set in emergency, as the air lines would have parted during the derailment, and the lead car lost one of its wheelsets (bogies) by snagging on the derailed cars a couple hundred feet before impact. Despite this, the remainder of the train covered the entire 600-foot stretch cleared by the derailed cars, and was still going at a good clip when it slammed into the now-stopped locomotives. Lotta force there. As I said, I was impressed.