Breaking News, Monorails at WDW collide

[fla4fun]

Prayers go out to the cm family. Not sure I'll ride the monorail when we go in 4mths. I fell the same way about riding the red line up here in DC.

I will still ride the monorails. But IF they still let people ride up front, I don't know that I would want to do that anymore. If anything would have scared me off the monorails, the fire they had several years ago would have kept me away. I'll be at BLT a month from now and if the monorails are running by then, I'll be riding them. I've been in a lot of close calls on the buses (none of them by fault of the bus driver) and I haven't been scared off of those either.

I'm hoping that like a tragic airline crash, they will investigate, find out what the problem was, and take whatever steps they need to in order to prevent another occurrence. My prayers go out to the family of the CM involved and the families who were on board when the accident happened.

 

[princesskelz]

very very sad.
i was on both monorails this week
my heart goes out to the family.

 

[KristyBDJ]

I'm sorry, but I don't think everyone should be getting down on the poster who posted the video link, nor on the person who taped it. At that point, the videographer didn't know someone had died. What if the CM somehow managed to crawl out alive? Everyone would have watched that video over and over again. Also, if people didn't document events, we would never be able to share in the joy and grief when things happen. If you don't want to watch it don't, but don't make that decision for everyone, KWIM?

As for the CM, I'm hoping he had a heart attack or something of that nature and was deceased before the crash. We're also very fortunate no one else was injured and that there wasn't a family riding in the front compartment with the engineer at that time. Prayers for the CM, his family and all who witnessed this horrific event.

I'm not trying to get down on anyone or pick any fights...I just don't understand why in those situations your instincts tell you to tape the tragedy rather than run to help, regardless of the actual extent to which you can help. My camera would have gone flying and my but would have been on top of that monorail trying to help. Or if you cant be of any help...it is uneccessary to whip out the camera. As far as posting the link...I'm sure that the poster was only trying to inform all of us, and I totally understand that, it's just too much information in my opinion, however I have not actually watched it.

 

[HappyGrumpy]

I hope we can all assume "positive intent" for the person shooting the video!

Who knows it may aid in the investigation!

If he had run up to the window and tried to film the deceased driver then THAT would have been tacky! We never know how we will react until we are in a situation like that.

My heart breaks for the family who lost their loved one as well as the driver of the other train. I agree with what was posted earlier and that how this happened in the TTC with ALL safety steps in place is mind blowing.

Now its a wait and see.

 

[noladave]

I think that is the end of anyone riding up front with the driver. There's no insurance company in the world willing to take that risk right now.

There will be so many investigations going on - civil and criminal, investigators looking at the health of the driver, and any medications he/she was on, also any phone records. After that, you will have mechanical logs that will have to be searched - how many times has that train been worked on, and for what. Also, there should be an automated system that prevents another train from coming into the station like that - was it working, and if so, why did it fail??

A lot of questions to be answered on this. Many legal fees to be spent. In the meantime, I would suspect an immediate suspension of all ride alongs up front. Possibly forever.

And if for some reason, Disney chose to allow ride alongs up front, would you really risk your family's health, after seeing that video??

 

[DisneyDoc1895]

Some things to consider. The impact of the trains was significant, but those people (other than the driver) walked out uninjured. That is incredible engineering. In that aspect, the system worked.

Obviously the question is why the trains were permitted to collide, and a safety system did not stop them before it happened. But these things happen. Safeties fail. We have seen this over the past few months around the country. It will be investigated and the system will be better as a result.

Autopsy will help prove if the driver had passed out or was incapacitated from a medical cause or if he died of traumatic injuries. My guess is he was unconscious upon impact.

Keep riding the monorail. It is still safer than driving your car to the park.

Re videoing - its what we do as humans. We watch video of disasters and reality TV. So someone has to tape it. In this case, there was nothing anyone else could do. 2-3 guys were trying to get in but it was clear would take a prolonged extrication by Reedy Creek to make entry.

Just some thoughts.

 

[cdotla]

Quite honestly, I think when DIsney gets the monorail back up and running is when I would most feel comfortable riding it. They will be going over everything with a fine tooth comb to ensure this never happens again.

I certainly hope they don't eliminate the upfront riding. The past safety record speaks for itself.

 

[CampbellScot]

how tragic. I just can't believe it.

As for the video, I am sure that the person videoing the event was not trying to be exploitative. This is the age of technology. It's what people do. It's second nature for some.It's not like he showed up after hearing of the crash. He was right there and probably in shock himself. Blasting him for not "helping" seems a bit judgmental. We weren't there. We have no idea what was going on. I'm fairly certain that those who will be investigating will be glad to have video of what happened directly following the crash, if only to see the positioning of the trains. I'm sure that Disney isn't thrilled that this video is all over the place, but what was filmed showed cast members and guests alike doing what they could to help. Nothing shameful in that. The man making the video also stopped as soon as he was asked.

It's a terrible situation all around. I just can't believe it happened. My prayers go out to all involved...including the children standing there on the platform. What a traumatic thing to witness.

 

[AKLFan3]

My thoughts and prayers are with the driver and the driver's family. I always feel really safe riding the monorail and I value the cast members who work so hard to make sure all of us have a magical vacation at WDW.

 

[calypso*a*go-go]

I'm thinking the video will probably be pulled very quickly. I watched and agree it is heartbreaking since we already knew what the outcome was...however it did help me understand the situation much better as I had read a few of the news articles and didn't realize the collision actually occurred inside the monorail station -- I was worried that it happened on the track somewhere and had horrible visions of the two cars suspended above the ground making the rescue effort even more difficult.

My heart goes out to everyone involved -- so very tragic.

 

[miss missy]

just updated at 115pm sad for any age, but he was only 21 yrs old

http://www.clickorlando.com/news/19954891/detail.html

 

[brighteyes]

ITA that the guy filming had no idea that the monorail driver was dead, it would seem that NO ONE did, because they were all banging on the window tyrying to speak to him. That is sad...

I also agree that investigators are going to be looking at that tape and be glad to have it as well.

And to what another pp said, the family was helped off the train by other monorail attendants, and probably weren't escorted off the platform so they could be assessed when emergency crews arrived. That is my thought.

This was probably also filmed immediately after the crash and I am sure everyone did the best they could considering the circumstances. For all we know the family could have been escorted away after the filming stopped. Who knows?

If I was staying at a monorail resort, never mind the inconvenience of not having the monorail, but the fear that would keep me from getting on it once it was up and running would be another thing.

My thoughts and prayers go out to all involved in this crash. Especially the driver and his family

Very very sad.

Stephanie

 

[tiggspring]

My husband and 3 kids had a Driver named Austin about this age he was wonderful. If a Pix comes into the Paper or TV please post it . Its amazing how connected you can feel with people you meet so briefly. He said it was his dream job and was so wonderful with my kids. Would like to let family know how special he made our kids feel if it was him. No matter who it was it is so sad

 

[k5jm]

Document, Document, Document!! That is the one thing I preach when doing security surveys of our facilities at work. I tell the field guys to camera cameras and video cameras to capture all the information they can. It is good practice in business. He was just in the right place at the wrong time.

Most of the Cameras at WDW at Pan, Tilt, zoom cameras and are rarely looking at an event when it happens. Those cameras are then pointed to a location after an incident has been reported.

My condolences to the family and his work family.

 

[steve76]

My thoughts go out the the Cast Member's family, friends and colleagues, and to all those involved in the incident and in dealing with the incident afterwards. It's very sad news.

Disney will find out what happened and make sure that it doesn't happen again. I will not let this incident stop me riding the monorail.

 

[Joshua_me]

I clicked on the still photos, that was enough (more than enough) for me to see, I can't bring myself to watch the video.

Three thoughts occurred at the same time for me when I first heard this on CNN:

1) How horrible for all involved.

2) I've got to go get on The Dis to find out more.

3) Cut-backs everywhere, shoddy maintenance, has it led to this ?

It's that third thought that haunts me the most. Disney has a way of clamping down information from all sources even in this technological age.

I suspect the video will "vanish" and that we may never know what really happened.

If the accident had occurred just a couple hours earlier, the monorail would have been packed (maybe over-packed, as often happens) and then who knows what could have happened.

All I know is my thoughts and prayers go out to the young man's family and friends.

 

[brighteyes]

My husband and 3 kids had a Driver named Austin about this age he was wonderful. If a Pix comes into the Paper or TV please post it . Its amazing how connected you can feel with people you meet so briefly. He said it was his dream job and was so wonderful with my kids. Would like to let family know how special he made our kids feel if it was him. No matter who it was it is so sad

So sad for sure, If this was indeed your driver, I am sure the family will be comforted to know how special he made your kids feel.

Stephanie

 

[Decorated_Dust]

When I saw this, I thought it was a joke. A bad one, but a joke nonetheless. I just could not process that Disney monorails would crash. I'm still having a hard time with it. I had been hearing for years about all of the safety precautions they had. I guess in this case, they stopped working.

However, when I heard about this, I could not help but think about all of the horrible train accidents that have happened in the past year all because of texting. I know this is horrible to think, but I have a feeling the driver was texting. I'm not going to speculate any further since there is no way we can know, and he is dead and deserves respect, but it is a suspicion I can't shake. I can see how the monorail drivers would become somewhat dependant on the equipment, particularly at 2 AM. I'm not making a judgement call since I would probably do the same thing, and I think most people here would say the same.

I hope that Disney can resume normal operations soon. I realize they will be looking at safety on the trains, as they should, but we need to remmeber that the monorail system is very safe. Millions upon millions of people have been transported on this line and there has been about 4 accidents and no deaths since 1971. This tragedy would only be the first death ever. It should not be a reason to do any drastic overhauls to the monorail system. Like I said, this sounds to me like a deadly combination of an equipment malfunction and human error.

My prayers are going out to the family. What a horrible thing to happen.

 

[WaltD4Me]

And if for some reason, Disney chose to allow ride alongs up front, would you really risk your family's health, after seeing that video??

With all due respect, personally, I probably would.

If I never did anything where something bad has happened I would never do anything. I recently took my nephew on one of those Power Tower drops rides, even knowing of the horrific accident where a girl lost her feet. People still go on Mission Space and RNR, they fly in airplanes and drive in cars. People still live in places where there have been earthquakes and hurricanes. What if, God forbid, the people in the back cars of that monorail had been injured, would you never ride the monorail at all again?

Will Disney allow guests to ride in front of the monorail again? I have no idea. Probably not, but if they did, I would take a ride there again.

 

[disrailfan]

Out thoughts and prayers go out to the driver and his families and fellow cast members. We are friends with someone we know that is a Monorail Driver, we met him on the DVC Member cruise last year. I am thankful to hear that it was not him.

We are due to be in Disney World on Saturday the 11th. I guess we will have to wait and see if things are back up and running by that point.

I do know from talking to our friend that there are a great many safety measures that are in place to keep things like this from happening. Most of the safety features have manual overides though.

Hopefully they get to the bottom of this and can correct the counter measure that failed.