The temperature was great - not too hot, not too cool. There was very little wind - hardly enough to rustle the leaves in the trees. The Grandkids and Papa were playing kickball, running the UP Mikado with a load of cattle, and repeatedly filling the acrylic tank car from the water tower at Vinita Station.
Then, in a moment of distraction, with the remote lying on a rock twenty yards away, there was the scream of the UP Conductor, yelling “STOP !!!” Then a murmur of “OH S**T!” Next, the sickening sound of screeching metal against the rails, the crashing of railcars, all accompanied by a calliope of steam from the exhaust of the now stopped locomotive. The youngest of the track crew [3yo]immediately ran to get help!
Fortunately, the Conductor was able to jump from the Caboose at the last possible moment. His injuries were merely superficial scratches, bruises, and a severly damaged ego.
The cause of the wreck, after investigation by the NTSB, was the failure and dis-attachment of a coupler, with the renegade cars rolling backwards down the steep Wilderness Gateway grade. The Mikado ran into the back of it’s own Caboose! The Conductor was embarrased because his radio hadn’t worked and the Engineer was unaware of the impending disaster until he rounded the last curve. After minimal [didn’t want to hurt the GKs feelings] grumbling, the train crew was able to clear the tracks, re-rail all cars, and get the coupler re-attached. There was no damage to the Mikado. Trains ran on schedule uneventfully the rest of the evening, until an approaching thunder storm forced a premature cessation of operations. JimC.