Train Derails in Tornado

[Fluesheet]

The approach speed of the white tank car also proves the point as I am assuming that the train went into emergency as cars began to topple.

I first saw this linked in an email on one of the mailing lists belong to, with the comment "bail off those engine brakes, boys!"

I asked a good friend that drives trains about that comment. My recollection of his response is that in a break-apart condition, the entire train will, as you noted, go into emergency. If the break is close to the front (like this), the engines will stop much faster than the rest of the train for two reasons:
- The locomotives have less inertia
- Depending on the train length it can take a good long time before the entire train has applied it's brakes (an emergency signal travels through the brake pipe at 900 feet per second), so until then at least a portion of the train is running free.

"Bailing off" referred to manually (and quickly) releasing the brakes on the locomotive so that the locomotives will roll free - which should keep them from being punched in the rear by a very large torpedo!