Lost somewhere in my junque I have a reprint of a speech given by a VP of the C&NW, presented at a 1904 conference. In it he quotes 1898 figures that shows that 16,000 brakemen were either killed or seriously injured.
There is a supposedly truism that back in the days of link and pin couplers, if a guy applied for a brakies job, the interviewer would ask the applicant to hold up his hands. If he had all 10 fingers you knew that his experience was very limited or non-existent.
Even today, a brakeman's job is very hazardous. I had the opportunity to work with - believe it or not - who had lost both legs above the knees. The circumstances were that he was riding a cut of cars while switching. Unexpectedly, the cut of cars was given a sharp jolt and he was thrown off the step of the flat he was riding and under the wheels. But somehow he survived and went on to buy a GP-7 of his own and became a certified engineer. And yes, he was able to get on and off the engine unassisted.
It is my understanding that today the BNSF prohibits its people from riding the steps on a moving car, or getting on or off same while it is moving.
Let's never forget that many, many of the standard operating rules were originally written in blood. How many of you in your railfan pursuit have crossed a set of tracks within 10' of a standing car and ran the risk of getting nailed if an engineer, perhaps a dozen or so cars away gives the cut a good kick? Would you absolutely guarantee that you would have enough time to get out of the way? Or how many of you, including me, have stepped on a rail and risked a bad sprain if your foot slips, or perhaps worse - like a broken ankle? It could happen.
In a similar vein, in the early days of the C&TS the game plan was to stop at Osier for lunch, just like today. After the passengers were unloaded and the steps stowed the train backed up for a runby opportunity. I was a car attendent at that time. On one occasion I was standing by the train when a man with child on his shoulders stepped between two cars to apparently look at the couplers and air hoses - et al - just as the engineer gave a backup signal. All I had time to do was reach in and not too gently yanked the father and the kid out of harm's way. The father's immediate reaction was to threaten my physical well being. That lasted until the cars started moving, and then he got a very sheepish look on his face. (He didn't bother to apologize.)
This message has gone far beyond what I had intended, so I'll end up by saying;
BE SAFE AND RIDE HAPPY
CJ
