Investigators say dispatching errors led to Union Pacific train crash that killed 2 workers

abcnews.go.com:

Dispatching errors and the failure of two backup systems allowed a Union Pacific train to slam into 74 railcars that had been parked on a side track for nine months in Southern California in 2022

OMAHA, Neb. — Dispatching errors combined with the failure of two backup systems allowed a Union Pacific train to slam into 75 railcars that had been parked on a side track for nine months in Southern California two years ago, killing an engineer and a conductor, according to a report issued Thursday.

The National Transportation Safety Board's final report detailed what caused the crash in the desert near the Salton Sea in September 2022.

Investigators determined that mistakes made by dispatchers at the railroad's headquarters in Omaha led to the train being routed directly into the parked railcars. One dispatcher even overruled the train crew who said they had been told by a colleague that cars were still parked on that siding, because his computer screen didn't show anything on that track.

The NTSB said a dispatcher inappropriately removed a note in the computer indicating the track was occupied two weeks earlier without verifying the tracks were empty. Another dispatcher that night ignored a separate warning about the siding and sent the train into it also without checking to be sure the tracks were empty. Both actions violated Union Pacific’s rules.

“Following this incident, Union Pacific took significant steps to ensure adherence to our safety rules,” company spokeswoman Robynn Tysver said, including changing the way different departments notify each other about stored cars and updating the computer-aided dispatch system.

“Union Pacific is committed to the health and safety of our employees,” Tysver added.

Railroad safety