What a jerk! Go for it Nick. And feel free to let me know how it pans out. (Good shot, by the way)
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| Posted by Runthat on February 17, 2014 | |
I find this predicament very funny for some reason. Did he actually manage to score a direct hit to your stomach? If so, that guy's aim is great! I wouldn't file a complaint since it won't amount to anything unless you have a witness. My guess is that the engineer has had previous trouble with people throwing things at his train and mistook you for another potential hoodlum.
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Very good chance the engineer will get suspended/written up for doing that. Sorry to hear that happened to you.
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| Posted by pjflstc on February 17, 2014 | |
Follow-up and post the results of the complaint. It's criminal to throw anything at a person with intent to harm. The law doesn't discriminate whether it's thrown from a car or a locomotive.
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OR, he was messing around. I've NEVER thrown a water bottle at ANYBODY while at work. I swear.
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Thanks for the comments. It was a direct hit to the stomach. Two other witnesses were there with me. I put in a call to the IHB in Hammond and they said that they would forward the information to the police department. Now, I'm waiting for a call.
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Hasn't anyone realized that the photographer was where he wasn't supposed to be? No, it wasn't nice having a water bottle thrown at you but I think everyone is overlooking the message that the engineer was trying to send...stay off the tracks!
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File a complaint. No railroad employee has the right to throw anything from any kind of equipment. That locomotive is equipped with a camera, it may not show him throwing the water at you, but it will show you standing on public property.
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| Posted by CSX8747 on February 18, 2014 | |
Sorry you experienced such behavior! However, please consider two things when filing a complaint. First, the photo may be proof that you're trespassing on railroad property, which may result in legal action against you. Secondly, did the engineer throw the water with the intent to do harm, or did he do it as a gift. Some engineers are known for tossing railfans bottles of water as a friendly gesture. He probably was trying to make sure you caught the water instead of it hitting the ground and bursting.
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I find the comment from "Runthat" to be crude and insensitive to the photographer who had the bottle thrown at him.
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| Posted by Thomas on February 18, 2014 | |
That man should be ashamed of himself for his stupid and child like act. He doesn't belong in the big chair, that's for sure.
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Any chance you have a shot showing his arm or the water bottle coming up? That'd be best. Good luck. I've been verbally harassed by a conductor (while standing on a public sidewalk on a bridge with no access to his train!) but your experience sounds far worse. Unfortunately these employees assume the worst about us.
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I would speculate that if you got hit by a water bottle, you're too close so complain away. That might get you a trespassing ticket through your admission of standing where you did.
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A couple of points...
Could it have been a malicious gesture on his part, in the sense that he felt you were standing too close to the tracks and wanted you off the right-of-way? It looks to me like you're standing well beyond the limits of the grade crossing, or...
Could he have simply intended for you to catch it?
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How can you determine the photographer is trespassing? I can't see it. Telephoto lense zoomed in. Unless your there and witness a trespass. Don't make a knee jerk accusation he was trespassing.
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"How can you determine the photographer is trespassing?" Um, he got hit in the tummy by a water bottle? The fact is, you can't throw throw a bottle too far from the cab window because there is very little room and it would be really hard to execute an overhand throw. Don't believe me, go try it.
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Based on the location the photographer is trespassing period. You cannot see that angle from anywhere, even with a zoom, without trespassing if the gates are down and if a train was that close to the road the gates were down. Whether the water bottle was a malicious act or not is one point and frankly if it was, the rail shouldn't have done it. That does not change the fact that this photo demonstrates unsafe trespass and should have not been added to the data base because of that.
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| Posted by Runthat on February 19, 2014 | |
jdayrail, I find your comment even funnier than the OP! For some reason I doubt that I'll lose any sleep over you feeling "offended". Pretty sure no one else will either. Anyway, if there are witnesses willing to make a statement to the police then file away on your complaint. Just hope you were on public property and not on RR property at the time.
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For those of you who think that Nick was on "railroad property", do a little research as I did instead of tossing out ignorant accusations. Look at Google maps 'street view' and you will note that he is more than likely standing along Broadway Street (public property). Nick has been a contributor to this site for quite some time and I would doubt that he would jeopardize his hobby with unlawful/unethical behavior. On the other hand, there are a few railroad workers (hopefully a VERY few) that I could see doing just as he stated - with that intent.
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Last summer while I was biking and railfanning in Hammond an IHB engineer threw me a bottle of water after he asked if I wanted any. It was a nice treat before the long bike ride back to Chicago.
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@Jeff: With the focal length being what is indicated in the EXIF data (even taking into account the focal conversion of this particular camera model) there's no way he would have been standing all the way back at the crossing; there are multiple signal bungalows that would have been in the way. And yes, I have been to this location recently.
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Jac - Nick states in his original comment that he was at the Broad Street grade crossing; aerial and street views of Google appear to illustrate that he was there; and looking from the angle that would be where he stood - there are no structures/buildings blocking his view (unless you are referring to the R-R / traffic control tower that would be behind him?) Even the signal shanty that is observed in the Google view (that would have been to the left of the train) is merely a snowbank in the photograph. Maybe you should go there and take a more recent look....?
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Please note the link to Illinois law regarding crossing gates and pedestrians at a RR crossing, but even more importantly listen to all of us who have been around trains for decades and decades and know why there are safety concerns. Based on the focal length (available in the EXIF data below) the photographer was TOO close to the tracks (hence the reason he got a bottle thrown at him, I would guess). He is also within lowered gates, no matter where is on the road, a violation of IL law. - http://police.illinoisstate.edu/crime_prevention_safety_tips/railroad_safety/railroad_ped.shtml
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Does anyone else notice it says move on the plow.
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Jeff - Google Earth dates the image as being taken in April 2013. One new signal bungalow has been installed, and has fresh gravel in place around it; not snow. Note also the new diamond setup sitting beside the tracks in the Google image. All this predates my visit in October 2013, by which time everything had been installed, including several more bungalows. So yes, in summary, I have taken a more recent look. And I stand by my statement that the photographer is standing well beyond the grade crossing.
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