A PSC Group train conductor was struck and killed while he and his co-workers were moving rail tank cars at a lubricant plant in Texas.
National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigators determined that the conductor entered the car’s “red zone” for an unknown reason and the train engineer failed to follow safety procedures when he lost contact with the conductor just before the incident occurred.
Engineer loses radio contact with conductor
At about midnight on Oct. 28, 2022, a PSC Group conductor, engineer, brakeman and a brakeman trainee were assigned to perform a shoving movement, which involved the use of a single locomotive to push 19 rail tank cars at an ExxonMobil lubricant plant in Beaumont, Texas.
The conductor was walking along the west side of the track, counting railcar lengths over the radio to the engineer as the train was slowly moving up the row of rail tank cars.
At 12:02 a.m., the conductor radioed for the engineer to reverse five railcar lengths to a certain point along the track. A moment later he communicated “three cars to the breezeway” to the engineer, who acknowledge this via radio.
After the three-car count, there was no further communication from the conductor. Thirty seconds after the last radio communication from the conductor, the locomotive’s event recorder showed a sudden decrease in the train’s brake pipe pressure. This caused the engineer to make an emergency application of the train’s air brakes. The engineer also attempted to radio the conductor at this point.
Worker found dead opposite side of designated walking path
An ExxonMobil employee arrived on scene to help load product into the rail tank cars and found the conductor dead beneath the last railcar on the east side of the track, opposite of where his co-workers had last seen him. This was also on the opposite side of the walking path designated by PSC Group procedures.
The ExxonMobil employee called his company’s control room for emergency response just as the engineer was calling the brakeman to check on the conductor. The brakeman arrived on scene as the ExxonMobil employee was making their call.
Emergency responders arrived and pronounced the conductor dead at the scene.
Several safety rules broken as task was performed
NTSB investigators found that the angle cock on the last railcar in the train was in the open position, meaning that the conductor would have reached into the red zone, or unsafe area, of the moving car to make this happen. Doing so was against company safety rules
Investigators also found that there were hoses, wheel chocks, and other items left in the walking area at the end of the track on the west side. This debris in the walking path may have been the reason why the conductor crossed to the other side of the track.
There was no certain explanation for why the conductor crossed the track or reached into the train car’s red zone, according to the NTSB.
A review of PSC Group procedures revealed that the engineer was supposed to have halted the train’s movement in half the distance of the conductor’s previous command if radio contact is lost.
There was no evidence of cell phone use or drug abuse by anyone involved in the incident.
Engineers now tested more frequently on emergency situations
The NTSB said the probable cause of the incident was:
- the conductor entering the red zone of the rail car where there was an increased risk of being struck, and
- the engineer’s failure to follow safety procedures and stop the train after losing radio contact with the conductor.
Following the incident, PSC Group changed its procedures to no longer allow employees to walk alongside railcars.
The company also increased its observational testing of engineers on response to emergency scenarios, such as loss of communication with a conductor. These tests are required to be conducted at least weekly.
ExxonMobil cleaned up all of its designated walking areas by installing brackets for storing wheel chocks and adding storage for product loading hoses. The company also added more lighting and rail crossing signs in certain areas.
