BOSTON — A system meant to prevent trains from moving when a door is obstructed failed, leading to the death of a passenger on a Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority rapid-transit train in April, according to a preliminary report released Monday by the National Transportation Safety Board.
The Boston Herald identifies the victim as 39-year-old Robinson Lalin, who boarded a northbound Red Line train shortly at the Fields Corner station shortly after midnight on April 10. At about 12:30 a.m. on April 10, as he attempted to exit a six-car train at Boston’s Broadway station, his right arm was caught as the train doors closed; the NTSB report says the victim was dragged 105 feet along the platform and onto the surface near the tracks. NTSB investigators tested the railcar involved and identified a fault in the door system; an inspection of the MBTA fleet found no similar problem in other calls.
The NTSB investigation is ongoing and will focus on MBTA equipment and operating procedures, the preliminary report indicates.
Hell of a way to die.
…. If there was a Conductor (Guard) observing the platform as the train was leaving the station like there used to be….
Well, Frederick, you bring up a point. There is a limitation to the door sensors even when they work. Get an article of clothing caught in the door (as opposed to a leg or an arm) the door sensor wouldn’t know that and you’d be just as dead.
As a lifelong rider of subways I remember the guard leaning out the window before each depaure to check that the doors are clear.
You can tear off an article of clothing…a lot more difficult to tear off your leg or arm.