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Train nearly wipes out photographer and family of 7 during a photo shoot on active tracks

by 34 Comments

When will people ever learn that this is not only dangerous and stupid but also highly illegal in most parts of the world? Yet again, we hear another story of not just one somebody, but 8 somebodies almost being hit by a train for a photo shoot on active train tracks.

Shot by Virtual Railfan, the video shows a family made up of the mother, father, two girls and three boys, along with a photographer doing a shoot on the tracks in Greencastle, PA, barely being missed by a huge train with only seconds to spare.

 

The video shows the family aimlessly wandering around the tracks before the hurried yell of “Here comes a train!” is heard, at which point they all seem to run around like headless chickens, not sure which way to go, with some ending up one side of the tracks and some on the other before the train comes barrelling through a few seconds later.

If any of them had tripped or fallen while trying to get out of the way, it would’ve gone much worse. Judging by how easily they seemed to lose their footing before the train got close, they were very lucky that didn’t happen.

The video was also posted to Facebook where it has received several hundred shares and comments – not one of them positive.

Operation Lifesaver has a number of tips for keeping safe around train tracks, although why “Never walk on the tracks” is only number 2 on the list, I’ve no idea.

I don’t know how many times websites have to report about near-misses (here’s another) or actual fatalities (oh yeah, there’s loads of those) around train tracks before people wake up and realise that it’s just not worth it. And don’t say “I’ll hear it coming!” because it’s nonsense (and still illegal). If Hollywood film crews can’t avoid them with a few dozen people looking out, then you’ve got no chance.

Even if you don’t care about your own lives, this will destroy the lives of anybody in the cab of that train when it hits you.

Aside from being stupid, dangerous and illegal, the photos also look terrible. Just stop.

[via Western Mass News]

Related posts:

You really can’t hear trains until they’re almost right on top of you Student from Navasota killed by train while taking photos Teenager killed by a train while taking his senior photos A Fatal Month for Selfie Photographers; Why is it So Dangerous?

About John Aldred

John Aldred is based in Scotland and photographs people in the wild and animals in the studio.

You can find out more about John on his website and follow his adventures on YouTube and Facebook.

  • Can that train driver come to Canada? Please.

    • Kevin Lane if you’re trying to start a racist rant against First Nations People who are protesting theft of their land, this is hardly the place for it

      • Zack Schindler

        Thank you.

    • Racist? What EXACTLY was racist about my comment you absolute idiot.

    • I’m a bit confused. He didn’t mention anything about Native peoples or anything even remotely like that. Nor does it look like he edited his comment.

    • Matthew Nehrling Also, knowledge that he could not possibly know is that I am married to (and currently sitting beside) my beloved native wife.

      Of course opposing anything today is met with claims of racism or some other ism or phobia. I just blocked him.

    • Kevin is implying he want that train driver to come to canada to run over the protestors who are on the railway.

    • David Fillion you are also an idiot.

    • All – if you don’t understand humour and/or you think MSNBC is news please just block me.

  • “Will you shoot our portraits for free? It’ll be great exposure for you”
    “Sure. Just stand on these train tracks and hold still”
    😈

  • LOL , Funny, as kids we played on the tracks all the time but had enough sense to be aware of our surroundings.

    • Andrus Chesley yes me too almost every day ,like you said we were aware of are surroundings

    • Andrus – Funny until a kid is hit by a train and the parents are notified by LE, been there done that, don’t ever want to do that again. Guess who the parents sued afterwards…. the RR.

    • Autumn Jay That’s the difference between today’s kids and yesterdays kids. Sue was not a word in our vocabulary. And we paid more attention to our surroundings. We have grown into a very liberal world and I do hate it. Guess I spent too much of my life overseas. ;-)

    • See you’re very young and in Chino, Cal. I was in the Marines in the bottom ’60’s with a guy from there. Zimmerman if I remember .

  • I am cringing watching that. Especially when the kids are walking up track, 25-50 yards away and the parents aren’t even paying attention.

  • Have to agree about the terrible photos part. Almost all the track photos I have ever seen were done by people that had no concept of leading lines anyway.

  • Aside from being stupid, dangerous and illegal, the photos also look terrible. Just stop. – Amen

  • Where are the pictures

  • Breeders lol

  • I’m just gonna throw it out there…I’ve seen great rail photos. That being said. I loved next to tracks for 10 years of my life you can hear, see them, and feel them far enough away that of you dont clear out I call it darwinism.

    • Jason LaVance while you may live near tracks it seems as if you’ve missed the way that sound waves travel. If you are on the track you will likely not hear it unless the conductor uses the horn— and they only do that at crossings.

      Walking on tracks is absolutely absurd but all those people that have died didn’t “deserve it”. They made a bad judgement call and were unaware just how much danger they put themselves in until it was too late.

      • Paul Aparycki

        “didn’t deserve it”?????

        They absolutely DO deserve it. The world is a better place without the brain-dead monkeys . . . who more often than not put the lives of intelligent people at risk because they have to “save” these genetic defects.

        If media and others made a point of being forthright and honest, i.e. instead of “a tragic accident today”, they actually wrote what really happened “some brain dead assholes bit the dust today” . . . perhaps one, just one of those irresponsible assholes might give it a second thought next time they try to “think”.

  • Amish paradise has no trains…

  • Sleek hunts.

  • Gotta thin the herd somehow…😬

  • Idiots. Stay off the damn tracks people.

  • Since when do the Amish want their photos being taken?

  • FFS

  • Voluntary culling of the truly stupid :-D

  • suruha

    What mother would find that okay, is all I can think! I wouldn’t! Not even with my grown children.
    My father’s side of the family worked for the railroads. My grandmother’s father was an engineer around Rodman, FL, which is no longer there. She had a LOT of respect for trains.
    I had my grandmother in my car one day, taking her to see the house I lived in with my roommates. We stopped at a stop sign which put us directly over some tracks. Trains rarely used these tracks. However, she looked and saw an engine and it had its light on. That meant the engine was indeed going and forward – towards us. She tried to find the door handle to jump out!
    It’s coming! It’s coming” she was crying!
    I checked to make sure I could go and sped away! I thought she was going to have a heart attack!
    She had seen neighbors and others who were involved in train accidents. They still happen.

  • JOhn C

    Aside from the danger, I have read that photos of people on tracks generally makes the viewer anxious, so unless that’s the intent it’s also not a good site for that reason

  • John Beatty

    Train tracks and photographs have been discussed from News to Social Media about the dangers involved. However, we do have Darwinism. If at this point you have not been taken out of the gene pool by attempting to get a selfie or photo at train tracks, you are safe…

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