Car Stuck on Railroad Track – What to Do
Text by Richie Setiawan
Having your car stuck on a railroad track may be something you are not quite likely to face. However, you never really know when unexpected things may happen to you. And when such a thing really does happen, being unable to save your life and the life of your beloved ones is absolutely the last thing you may want to face. Therefore, it is recommended that you take some time and try to gain the information this particular article is trying to offer you.
For your information, there have been – and still are – lots of cases in which a car gets stuck on a railroad track. Unfortunately, in most of such cases, casualties are inevitable due to the inappropriate actions taken by those involved. With that being said, unnecessary casualties can be avoided provided you know what you must and what you must not do in such cases.
One thing you will have to keep in mind at all times is that you can never assume that no trains are coming your way when you are unable to see any. Also, when you finally see one coming your way, it is too late for you to save yourself. This is because trains travel at very high speed and thus is not capable of coming to a complete standstill within a limited period of time. This is why they hit any cars on their track in almost all such cases that ever happened.
With that being said, you must not try to restart your car engine when it just goes off all of a sudden on the railroad. There are not few people out there who have lost their lives due to such actions. So, what you must do instead is to get off your car as soon as you can. Then, after you have got off your car, you need to locate the railroad crossing sign which is usually placed by the DOT – which stands for Department of Transportation – before the crossing. You need to do this as quickly as possible.
At this point of time, you may be asking why you need to locate this particular sign. Normally on the sign, there is a number you can call in case of emergency. It may turn out pretty wise if you try calling the number to warn the railroad company about the situation you are encountering. This way, any trains that are possibly on the tracks heading your way may have a better chance of stopping and, if you are lucky, your car may be left intact. Also, remember one thing; you are recommended to make the call once you get yourself along with your beloved ones away from the railroad track. Otherwise, when the train finally comes your way and hits your car, you will as well get hit by the flying wrecks of your car.
However, in some cases, you may find no numbers to call but you won’t have to worry. Try calling 911 and tell them your situation. You may also want to know that if this situation is caused by you – in other words, it is your fault – then you are likely to get into more troubles in some time pretty soon. However, you shouldn’t be selfish keeping away yourself from the police and the possible troubles when you cannot call the railroad company directly. This may cost the lives of lots of people.
Some time earlier, we mentioned that you need to get off your car as soon as you can once it is stuck on a railroad track. However, for those of you out there who have children inside your car, it is obvious that you will have to save your children. Nevertheless, when you do this, remember that you must do it fast so as not to get hit by any approaching trains.
Apart from your children, you may have left valuable things inside your car when you get off. In such a situation, you should never try to retrieve your valuables from the car. It is simply too dangerous and the price you may have to pay is your or your family’s life.
Another good thing you can do is to run towards where the train is coming from, if you can see any trains coming indeed. By doing so, you can avoid the flying wrecks should any crashes take place. Needless to say, you must not run on the railroad track.
Last but not least, no matter what you do in such a situation, do not panic. Panicking won’t help you in any way. Instead, it will make things even worse. I bet you won’t want to be in any worse situation taking into consideration having your car stuck on a railroad track is already as bad a situation as it can be.
Friday, 1st October 2010
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