About 1:00 a.m., on Thursday, June 14, 1984, Burlington Northern Railroad Company freight trains Extra 6760 West and Extra 7907 East collided head-on on the single track main line near Motley, Minnesota. The trains were being operated on dispatcher-issued train orders, in nonsignallized territory. The accident resulted in three fatalities, one serious injury, and three minor injuries; damages were estimated at $3,931,146. The dispatcher controlling the movement of the trains had been promoted to dispatcher recently before the accident and was working in his second tour of duty in that position. The dispatcher had been promoted from a stenographic/clerical position after having been nominated to and completing a company training program; he had no prior operating experience. The National Transportation Safety Board determines that the probable cause of this accident was the Burlington Northern Railroad's inadequate personnel selection criteria which resulted in the placement of an individual without sufficient training and supervision into the safety critical position of train dispatcher.


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    Title :

    Railroad Accident Report - Head-On Collision of Burlington Northern Railroad Freight Trains Extra 6760 West and Extra 7907 East near Motley, Minnesota, June 14, 1984


    Publication date :

    1985


    Size :

    35 pages


    Type of media :

    Report


    Type of material :

    No indication


    Language :

    English