Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SATURDAY, March 13, 1993 TAG: 9303130295
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: B-4 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: By Associated Press
DATELINE: NEWPORT NEWS LENGTH: Medium
LAWYER QUESTIONS DERAILMENT CAUSE
A private examination of an Amtrak derailment attributed to tampering with a siding switch has yielded clues to other possible causes, says an attorney who handles railroad accident cases.But a lawyer for Amtrak and CSX Transportation Inc., which maintains the tracks where the Aug. 12, 1992 derailment occurred, said the evidence of vandalism is clear and that challenging it is "the only way they can show some kind of alleged negligence on the part of the railroads."
At stake in the case, which is still under FBI investigation, is potentially millions of dollars in court awards for injuries.
Stephen E. Heretick, a Portsmouth attorney who represents 42 people seeking damages from the derailment, contends some evidence "doesn't reflect vandalism," although he said he cannot prove an alternative cause.
According to National Transportation Safety Board investigators, the train was traveling at about its 79 mph speed limit shortly after 9 p.m. when it reached an open switch and ran onto a 15 mph siding.
In the resulting derailment, the engine fell on its side against a culvert, seriously injuring the engineer; all four coaches and a dining car behind the engine derailed but remained upright.
Dozens of people were treated at the scene and at local hospitals. But no one was killed and only four people, including engineer Milton Womble, had to be hospitalized.
NTSB investigators said a signal about three miles from the siding indicated the rails were in the proper position for the main line. But a lock that was supposed to be on the switch had been removed, and bolt cutters were found nearby.
Heretick contends that some evidence points to the possible failure of railroad equipment where the main line crosses the siding. He also said the switch could have been left open by mistake.
But he questioned whether a vandal could have manually thrown the hard-to-move electronic switch in the few minutes after the train passed the signal and has raised doubts about why objects found at the scene - the bolt cutters on one side of the tracks, the lock in trees behind the switch on the other side - were left where they were.
Chiefly, Heretick points to wreckage that CSX officials, under court rules in such cases, allowed his expert investigators to examine. Among other things, he said:
The vandalized switch showed to his experts was undamaged, but a photograph taken on the night of the derailment indicated the device had been badly battered.
The crossover rails - called the "frog" - where the crash occurred should have been destroyed by the derailment's impact. But the frog examined by his investigators was in good condition.
Maintenance records showed the crossover was written up for loose bolts in the months prior to the derailment.
A passenger car had fragments of rail embedded in it, indicating a splintered rail. Damaged rails given to Heretick's investigators were bent but did not show splintering.
Heretick believes some of the wreckage that might point to other causes was removed and discarded as workers tried to repair and reopen the main line in the days following the derailment.
But Philip G. Denman, an attorney for Amtrak and CSX, said Heretick's experts were given a chance to "crawl all over" every piece of debris.
Denman denied CSX had maintenance problems with the crossover and said the switch and tracks were in excellent condition. The switch could not have been left open accidentally or controllers at CSX Transportation headquarters in Jacksonville, Fla., would have known it was out of position, he said.