Did marijuana use cause fatal train crash?
The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) now knows what was behind a fatal 2015 train collision near Roswell, New Mexico, but it doesn’t know why. An NTSB investigation has determined that a conductor’s failure to properly line a switch is the probable cause for the April 28 collision of two Southwestern Railroad freight trains. The striking train crew did not perceive the misaligned switch in non-signaled territory and so did not stop the train before reaching it contributed to the collision.
Rolling papers in the locomotive cab
Post-accident toxicological testing on the engineer of the striking train – who died in the incident - identified significant levels of tetrahydrocannabinol. These results, and the presence of rolling papers and pipes in the locomotive cab suggest the engineer smoked marijuana between 30 minutes and five hours before the accident, and, because the engineer had been on duty for almost 10 hours, he likely used marijuana while on duty and likely was under its influence while operating the train. It could not, however, be determined if the THC in the engineer’s system affected his response to the misaligned switch.
The conductor’s results were positive for medications administered during his medical care and for oxycodone and its metabolite, oxymorphone, however the results indicate the conductor most likely was not impaired at the time of the accident. The lack of inward-facing cameras in the locomotive prevented the NTSB from determining the actions of the crewmembers while operating the train, or even which crewmember was operating the train just prior to the accident.
The conductor was seriously injured in the collision that derailed 11 locomotives and three empty hopper cars and caused about $2 million in property damage.
Rolling papers in the locomotive cab
Post-accident toxicological testing on the engineer of the striking train – who died in the incident - identified significant levels of tetrahydrocannabinol. These results, and the presence of rolling papers and pipes in the locomotive cab suggest the engineer smoked marijuana between 30 minutes and five hours before the accident, and, because the engineer had been on duty for almost 10 hours, he likely used marijuana while on duty and likely was under its influence while operating the train. It could not, however, be determined if the THC in the engineer’s system affected his response to the misaligned switch.
The conductor’s results were positive for medications administered during his medical care and for oxycodone and its metabolite, oxymorphone, however the results indicate the conductor most likely was not impaired at the time of the accident. The lack of inward-facing cameras in the locomotive prevented the NTSB from determining the actions of the crewmembers while operating the train, or even which crewmember was operating the train just prior to the accident.
The conductor was seriously injured in the collision that derailed 11 locomotives and three empty hopper cars and caused about $2 million in property damage.