Re: Boiler Failures - Preparedness

Don't blame just the fireman. This was a management created disaster. Crew was not properly trained, boiler washout rules were disregarded and FRA reports falsified. 30 Day washouts were skipped, water glass spindles were not reamed out during washout, water glass was not blown down, water glass illumination was not working (it was an evening run), not to mention that the generator wasn't working so there were no cab lights or headlight for that matter. I'm sure there were other violations, but these are the ones I remember from reading the report.
Lesson, self enforcing rules work for the law abiding, but don't work for the scofflaws.
The new FRA regs, requiring that all boilers be ultra sound tested for thickness and all seams x-rayed, will catch the hidden boiler problems that just doing a hydro won't. Hopefully, ncreased awareness of the need for training and maintenence, plus tougher regulatory oversight, will prevent another Gettysburg from happening.
Thankfully, no lives were lost, either in Gettysburg or in Cuba.