NTSB: Train crash engineer's cellphone in use while he was on duty

I just received this update from the National Transportation Safety Board, which says that Metrolink engineer Robert Sanchez apparently used his cellphone and sent text messages while on duty on Sept. 12 -- with a text message being sent from his cellphone 22 seconds before the collision with a freight train in Chatsworth. Twenty-five people died, including Sanchez.

My colleague Robert Lopez has a story on our homepage. The NTSB says that it's still trying to correlate the exact times that everything happened leading up to the crash, including exactly when the text messages were sent from the phone and received. Here's a link to an earlier post on Bottleneck Blog about the Federal Railroad Administration's lack of a policy concerning cell phones.

Here's the release:

October 1, 2008

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UPDATE: NTSB'S INVESTIGATION OF THE METROLINK, UNION PACIFIC

ACCIDENT IN CALIFORNIA

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The following is an update of the NTSB's investigation of

the September 12, 2008 accident in Chatsworth, California

involving a Metrolink commuter train and a Union Pacific

freight train.  As a result of the head-on collision, there

were 25 fatalities and numerous injuries. 

 

Information regarding the Metrolink engineer's cellphone

activity on the day of the accident was obtained from his

service provider under subpoena from the NTSB.  As part of

the ongoing investigation, this information is being used to

determine the timing of cellphone activity, which includes

text messaging to and from the engineer's cell number, in

relation to the engineer's duty hours and train operations.

Although the precise timing and correlation of these events

is still underway at the Safety Board's Recorder Laboratory,

preliminary information is being released regarding the

approximate cellphone activity during the engineer's duty

hours on the day of the accident.

On the day of the accident, the Metrolink engineer was on

duty for two periods of time.  The engineer was responsible

for the operation of a train from 6:44 am until 8:53 am.

During this period of time, the engineer's cellphone

received 21 text messages and sent 24 text messages.

He was then off duty until 2:00 pm. 

The engineer was responsible for the operation of Metrolink train 111 from

3:03 pm until the time of the accident. During this time

period, the engineer's cellphone received 7 text messages

and sent 5 text messages.  According to the time on the cell

phone provider's records, the last text message received by

the engineer's phone before the accident was at 4:21:03 pm,

and the last text message sent from the engineer's cell

phone was 4:22:01 pm.

 

A preliminary estimate for the time of the accident,

according to the Union Pacific train's onboard recorders, is

4:22:23 pm.  The Safety Board's Recorder Laboratory is

continuing to correlate times recorded for use of the

Metrolink engineer's cellphone, train recorder data, and

signal system data to a common time base.

"I am pleased with the progress of this major investigation

to date," Acting NTSB Chairman Mark V. Rosenker said today.

"We are continuing to pursue many avenues of inquiry to

find what caused this accident and what can be done to

prevent such a tragedy in the future."

Comments

[Kay Meyer]

It does seem (so far) that this accident was due to the engineer's neglect. But I think we should refrain from turning him into the dirt of the earth. There's not one of us who makes it through life without making a mistake that could have gone terribly wrong. 99% of the time, we walk away thinking, "Man, was I lucky!" Then there's the 1% of the time when a mistake turns into a horrible tragedy. I've known of -- and have personally known -- many good people who have died from such mistakes- turned-to-tragedy, sometimes even when the mistake was their own or that of a family member who loved them and felt the weight of responsibility for them. I think we should try to take take it easy on Sanchez's family.

[Clayton Girabaldi]

Please, texting is obviously dangerous while driving, but i guarantee you can check the phone records of all the other engineers on the same day and you would see them textting too.

[Mike Zrodlo]

What was this guy thinking?? or was it premeditated murder/suicide??

[Gokhan]

I will fill in the blanks using simple kinematics calculations, also accounting for acceleration and deceleration:

4:20:36 Left the Chatsworth Station
4:21:03 Received text message
4:21:53 Ran the red light at CP Topanga
4:21:56 Ran through and broke the railroad switch
4:22:01 Clicked "Send" for the reply text he wrote
4:22:23 Crash

[Jeff Kaufman]

How tough will METROLINK get in the future, to send a strong message to train operators that "text messaging and/or reading text messages" while operating will result in immediate dismissal and subject to criminal charges?" First offense is the last offense. Anything less of a penalty will be as tragic as this horrible event that took so many lives and ruined many others. Let us show compassion for future victims by being tough as nails on those without regard for human life.

[Spokker]

He sent a message FROM his phone 22 seconds before the crash.

Is there any doubt at this point? Come on. Enough of the family trying to save this scumbag's reputation. 24 text messages SENT within 2 hours of operating a commuter train.

I'm sorry, but that's too much for me to take. I'm really flabbergasted here and don't know what else to say.

[Tempy]

The fact that this guy was text messaging AT ALL while driving a train pretty much classifies him as a giant screw-up. I'm sure Metrolink saved a lot of money by using rent-an-enginneers like him, but was it worth it? I hope they'll change their policy and use engineers over which they have direct control.