The "Holy crap" video

[Automan2164]

I know some of you might have seen this, but for those who haven't, watch this:

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=azV5bC2br-Q

 

This happened in the town I work for. The train was coming into town, when a freak tornado in January ( :nuts: ) caught a train off guard. The rear engine just happened to be facing backwards, with the camera on. The tornado overturned about 17 boxcars, but left the rear section of cargo on the track. The boxcars tore up a bridge when they came across, and allowed the tanker seen barreling into the engine to de-rail before slamming into the works. It was still moving at 17-20 when it happened. The tanker was full of a highly unstable chemical that barely likes itself. A small hole might seal itself off, but a large hole is catastrophic. We were told after the fact, that if it would have had a catastrophic failure, there would have been a VERY large crater, measured in tenths of a mile. The front of the tanker was actually depressed a few feet inside the shell, and the valves on the bottom were sheared off, but thankfully due to saftey items, there was no release in gas. No fatalities, but it could have been much worse.

 

Rob L.

[Eagle]

That's insane. I knew tornadoes were powerful, but I had no idea a twister could pick up a freakin' TRAIN.

[87Warrior]

That was insane! Having seen several cloud to ground twisters and helped with the Greensburg, KS clean up, I can say I never gave trains a second thought.

 

Back when the Greenburg twister ripped through the town, there were pictures taken by a trucker that had slept in his sleeper through the ordeal. He was delivering a John Deere combine to the dealership and kept it strapped to his trailer over night. Somehow the truck, trailer, and combine stayed upright even though much of the loose machinery was flipped or flopped. Wish I could find those images :(

[jpnjim]

Anyone trying to drive their car near one should watch that video. :smart:

[dakal]

holy crap 2