Posted to Facebook, from a friend: https://durangoherald.com/articles/...sidents-businesses-against-train-for-416-fire From my understanding, still has NOT been proven! Only a statement by ONE witness.
Good grief. No such thing as an act of God or act of nature in this era -- an event HAS to be someone's fault and if that someone can pay, so much the better. I hope the suit is thrown out. If it goes to court, the wrong verdict could ruin the railroad.
Well, since it is a civil suit, that is not a good sign. I think the rules for civil suits are "never let the facts interfere with an opportunity to bleed someone or something dry of money".
What else might be ruined if the railroad did shut down and the 150,000+ riders it attracts annually no longer visited the Durango/Silverton area? Another example of be careful of what you wish (or sue) for.
This is quite a common tactic. If you cannot get your way, you just proceed to litigation and drive them out of business. No matter how wrong your viewpoint.....
The railroad may very well be liable. Just because we love the railroad doesn’t make them innocent in the matter. Railroads (deisel one too) start fires all the time. The neighbors of the railroad have been extinguishing fires for years. If the railroad did start it, they have to do what any other railroad does and pay for damages. The D&SNG knows their fleet has the potential to start fires. That’s why they just spent $3.2 Million on a pair of new diesels. I can understand the frustration of the people who may have lost all their worldly possessions because of this fire. https://www.google.com/amp/s/the-jo...gate-residents-among-first-to-attack-416-fire https://www.google.com/amp/s/durang...ervice-fire-investigations-take-time-patience
IF the railroad is actually responsible. Not another cause. I have as yet to hear or read where any actual blame has been proven, and done so beyond any doubt. Just allegations.
The Gumbies of Durango have been giving the railroad a hard time since they arrived in town. They are of the mindset that they can get rid of anything that annoys them and will force the issue via litigation. In their back pocket is the green minded zealots and they will have their hand out next again with a lawsuit. It becomes a contest of who can out fiance the other in court. In a civil suit there is no burden of proof. I can only hope they go before and honest judge with a fair track record. We can hope that there is justice in our land and the railroad wins out in the end. Sitting on the golden egg and the Gumbies, have no idea what they are about to kill.
It is worth noting that "beyond a reasonable doubt" is a standard in criminal law. In civil cases, the phrasing I recall is "preponderance of evidence." Sometimes expressed as 51% +
I’ll wait until the findings of the Fire Investigator come back to throw favor one way or the other. I’m sure the railroad would like to be cleared more than anyone. Maybe they’ll get lucky and find something that clears them. Time will tell.
They did indeed cause the fire. Warm water in the tank caused the injector to not pick up, and without the injector the water sprayers at the stack to put out errant sparks weren’t working. Whoops!
That would be an expensive mistake. I haven’t seen an official update on the investigation yet, do you have a link?
I am uncertain how water temperature in the tank, (tender water?), would cause an injector to not pick up. Please explain. Injection is essentially an issue of created suction. Shouldn't water temperature then be meaningless? I wonder about any insurance and what it might cover? Oh well. Fools will hop on this and kill a historic icon for their own selfishness. Yes, selfishness. It is all about what "I" want these days, and anyone, anything I must trample under foot, is an I-do-not-care attitude. Somewhat similar to self-immolation, with the way we desecrate and destroy our own history and industry, here in the good ol' USA today.
