R&N 2102 Close Call with Tamaqua FD

Reading & Northern 2102, pulling an autumn leaf excursion has a close call in Tamaqua, PA with the fire department responding to a 5 alarm fire downtown around 4:30 pm, Saturday October 29, 2022. Thankfully it was reported there were no injuries in the fire.

[hoscalereadingrailroadhobb]

I showed this video to my father who used to be a voulnteer fighter and former Battalion Chief. Even though the truck driver stopped, this still was a very stupid move of the driver. He has to take into account the weight of a 4-8-4 T-1and how fast a T-1 can stop and how fast a Fire Engine can stop. There was a chance that himself and the crew could have never made it to the call. Yes my Dad and I get there were trapped victims, but the safety and well being of the truck crew while heading to the call is top priority.

[OldsVistaCruiser]

People tend to treat a steam locomotive like a toy. The 2102 herself weighs over 400 tons, and was pulling 18 sold-out passenger cars, doing 35 mph, probably with around 1, 000 people on board. A train is nothing to mess with!

[garryferrington]

Every time I see this engine I'm amazed at it's sheer pulling power. And at speed, too!

[alwhalen]

The first fire truck entered the crossing at 0:06, cleared at 0:11. Train entered the crossing at 0:18, cleared at 1:00. Net gain for the response of 0:55. 0:07 was NOT worth the risk in my opinion. With 20 years as a volunteer firefighter and 39 years as a railroader I would side with the railroad on this one. Wait it out. There are way too many what if's here to be taking that risk. (All the FDs I was involved with treated railroad crossing signals as an absolute stop).

[thStreetProductions]

When I came through tamaqua heading south following the train I saw the second fire truck get through after but had no clue about the first. Absolute chaos.

[matthewpowell]

I'll bet that gave the engineer and fireman a fright.

[cqharper]

Bottom line, according to the PA vehicle code they have the right to do what they did but there is a phrase in this section that says "due regard.". Odds are (what actually happened) they made it through safe, but now just think if they didn't? You would still have the potential of 4 trapped victims in the fire. Then a problem on top of a problem which would drain much needed resources to the fire scene to the scene of an accident. If the fire truck did hit the train this could be a potential MCI involving the fire crew, train men and between 650 and 750 passengers on board the train. The old saying goes "we didn't start the problem, let's not become part of if."

-be safe everyone

[enjoythesiren]

I love this. Definitely shows the dangers of what can happen when a railroad crossing is next to or near a firehouse.

[dougdoyle]

The apparatus chauffer stopped the rig, looked carefully and made a considered judgement call to proceed because he was confident he could clear the track before the train arrived. This is not the classic circumstance of an apparatus being driven Code 3 and blowing through intersections without even touching the brakes. In addition, I am do not know if the situation being reported at what was obviously a working fire, involved trapped persons in need of near instant rescue. If that turns out to be the case, there is NO question in my mind that the chauffer did the right thing in making a bold move that he knew his rig could do. The risk/reward calculation works in this instance.

[OldIronVideo]

Even if he was llegaly allowed to do that it was a STUPID idea if you look at what could have happened.
If he got stuck then
1. His truck would be out of commission
2. Possible train derailemnt and risk of damaging a boiler
3. All crossings would be blocked making the others unable to get to the fire while also being tied up helping the hurt on the train
4. It took less than a minute for the train to pass the risk was almost not worth it

[LeonardFShanerJR]

I was five cars back in traffic when this happen. I'm glad no one was hurt.

[trezjr]

You were certainly in the right spot at the right time! Many will debate the situation ... because you got the shot. A super video catch.

[Yellowstone]

This footage is just crazy for me, loud siren, loud whistle, GREAT COMBO

[dongiovanni]

The firetruck was 100% in the wrong. If the driver had misjudged the situation, it could easily have created another incident, and blocked the following emergency vehicles from reaching the fire.

Part of emergency management is not creating a bigger emergency.

[RailFoxMedia]

I kinda have mixed feelings about this one. You gotta look at it from both perspectives. On the one hand, at the end of the video, you see a building actively burning down, god forbid that there are people trapped inside, and as a first responding firefighter, they have to arrive on scene as quickly and as SAFELY as possible. Man didn’t hesitate. He saw a window of opportunity and took it to get there on time. At the same time, let’s say he gets stuck on the tracks attempting to do so. Or the train is traveling way quicker than he anticipated. 2102 is a 404 ton beast, and like pretty much all trains, would take almost about a half a mile if not more to stop. And an oncoming collision with a fire truck is way more of a disaster waiting to happen. Now you have a serious train derailment and a building that’s on fire, two of the worst possible scenarios to happen at the same time. I don’t know. There is no right or wrong in this situation, just an unfortunate set of circumstances at the wrong time.

[nickraschilla]

You can never judge how long a train will take to get to the crossing with a quick peak that the driver of the fire truck had. He risked many lives with that stupid move. I worked on the railroad as an engineer for many years. That driver broke the cardinal rule of risk. Many crossing accidents are a direct result of that exact action, not being able to judge the trains speed. What if the truck stalled or hesitated on acceleration? I sure hope that driver was reprimanded and not allowed to drive again.

[williamschlenger]

Beautiful train.Reminds me of the old days.

[ThunderTrain]

That was crazy to hear about that, and when she was coming back through past hamburg I could hear her in shartlesville.

[thomaswellington]

That truck was long gone before 2102 got there.

[joestrainworldvideos]

Thank you for sharing an amazing train video. Greetings Joe 😊