Member killed in train crash
LINCOLN, Neb. -- The worst fears of family members became reality after they identified the body of a railroad crewman following an accident in late October near Flagstaff, Ariz.

The remains of 38-year old Mark Hurtz, a member of UTU Local 305, Lincoln, Neb., were found in the wreckage of two Burlington Northern Santa Fe (BNSF) freight trains, according to reports. The accident left crushed and burnt rail cars sprawled across the snow.

The crash pushed several cars off the tracks. Three locomotives burst into flames, burning thousands of gallons of diesel fuel. Flames lit the sky through the night. A dozen cars from the lead train, which was stopped on the tracks, and three from the rear train, derailed. Several more stayed on the tracks.

Jerry and Margaret Hurtz of Omaha flew to Arizona to identify their son. "They're in shock and we're in shock," Sara Weixelman, sister of the late railroad engineer, who was working on the run as the conductor, told reporters.

Hurtz had been employed with BNSF about five years, Weixelman said. He and wife, Linda, had been married about 10 years and had no children.

Three other crew members were hurt in the Oct. 31 accident when one BNSF train rear-ended another that had stopped on the tracks about 10 miles west of Flagstaff.

One engineer was hospitalized in critical condition. The two other crewmen were treated at a hospital and released.

The parked train was carrying a small amount of hazardous materials but authorities said there wasn't a spill. The 15 families that had been evacuated were allowed to return the next day.

Interstate 40, the main east-west route through northern Arizona, was closed briefly.

The wreck's front train, carrying hazardous materials, was headed from Alliance, Texas, to Los Angeles. The trailing train was headed from Chicago to Richmond, Calif.

Hurtz family members expected the worst when they were told only one crew member was missing and Mark was unaccounted for after the accident.

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) was called to investigate the crash. Findings generally are released from six to nine months after an event is investigated, but NTSB spokeswoman Lauren Peduzzi said it could be a year before NTSB releases its final report. "We do a very extensive, a very thorough, investigation," she said.

Members of the UTU's Transportation Safety Team (TST) also were dispatched to the accident site the following day.

According to reports, NTSB investigators have recovered the event recorders from the two freight trains.

The devices, which are similar to the "black box" recorders on airplanes, could tell investigators what the trains were doing before and during the accident. The recorders had severe heat damage from the fire, Peduzzi said.

BNSF spokeswoman Lena Kent said the surviving crew members had been tested for drugs, a standard procedure following accidents. She said the results would not be released unless they played a role in the conclusions reached by the NTSB.

The TST was organized, as part of UTU's pro-active agenda, for the purpose of participating in accident investigations conducted by the NTSB with the goal of contributing to the fact-finding phase of the field investigations, President Charles L. Little said. "The TST is not a replacement for the grievance procedures or protective roles of the general chairperson and local chairperson. The function of the local officers, representing employees covered under the Railway Labor Act, is separate and is not impacted by the TST program."

The TST has played and will play a vital role in the fact-finding phase of rail accident investigations where that accident meets TST criteria, according to TST Chairperson David Hakey.

The members of the TST, already proficient in train and switching operations, have received advanced training on accident investigations from the NTSB, Hakey said. The training has focused on operating practices, human performance factors, human survival factors and crash worthiness of locomotives and passenger equipment.

"Our goal is the advancement of transportation safety for all transportation workers and the general public," Little said.

(Click here to return to Page One)