# Disney World monorail crash kills driver!



## kjsgrammy (Jul 5, 2009)

I tried pasting the web page so that you could go directly to the info on this, but couldn't get it copied for some reason!  The news article is on CNN.com about the crash.  Tragic.


----------



## Bill4728 (Jul 5, 2009)

Here is the link


----------



## tombo (Jul 5, 2009)

*Here is the CNN link and another site*

http://www.cnn.com/2009/US/07/05/u.s.disney.monorail/index.html

http://www.clickorlando.com/news/19954891/detail.html


----------



## ecwinch (Jul 5, 2009)

Thank god there were no other injuries, and/or other people riding up front. You have to wonder if they will stop letting people ride in the pilot/drivers cab.


----------



## carl2591 (Jul 7, 2009)

the news today in orlando was reporting a memo from disney that in honor of the pilot they were suspending guest from riding in the front for a while.. no mention on how long.

train was running monday around noon when we were in disney magic kingdom.


----------



## JeffW (Jul 8, 2009)

carl2591 said:


> ... that in honor of the pilot they were suspending guest from riding in the front for a while...



Why are they doing it "in honor"?  If anything, they should be doing it for safety reasons.

Jeff


----------



## Detailor (Jul 8, 2009)

JeffW said:


> Why are they doing it "in honor"?  If anything, they should be doing it for safety reasons.
> 
> Jeff



Probably just a corporate euphemism.  I'm sure that they're doing it to avoid liability if something like this were to happen again.  My guess is that guest safety is probably number two behind the potential for a law suit.  "In honor of" sounds a lot better from a public relations standpoint but doesn't seem to make a lot of sense in this case.

Dick Taylor


----------



## UWSurfer (Jul 8, 2009)

My wife asked me and I didn't know the answer...we had thought these trains operated automatically and the pilots were there more for show than anything.  

That was our impression at least at D-Land, but it appears that might not be the case.


----------



## carl2591 (Jul 8, 2009)

the trains are operated by the pilot.. they have safeties on the train to prevent collisions and this one was human error.. the train was switched on to wrong track at night and the collision avoidance system is disabled to allow the trains to do this. not sure the entire sequence of events but I was traveling with guy that used to be a train "pilot"/ they are mostly automatic but the pilot is in control most of the time.. 

not sure about the "in honor of" thing my self.. most times if you sat up with pilot you got a set of wings for being the "co-pilot"on that leg..

disney is trying to put a happy face onthis for sure.. they do not like the bad news cycle that is going on.. for the most part its not on the TV to much now..
at least what I am watching in between beer by the pool at Summer Bay Resort..

choa..


----------



## JeffW (Jul 8, 2009)

Personally I'm surprised there hasn't been more coverage about this, especially considering the similiarities to the DC Metro train accident ~2 weeks ago.

Jeff


----------



## RIMike (Jul 8, 2009)

*At Funeral*

The young man killed loved working for Disney and being a Monorail driver.  This is tragic.  He is the nephew of very good friends of mine.  The funeral was held today at First United Methodist Church in Kissimmee, Fl.  It was wonderful to see so many people from Stetson Unversity where Austin was a student and from Disney.

The Monorail has had a long history of safety.  It, the accident, was at the end of the work day, sometime around 2:30am....my hope is that more safety procedures come out of this for other workers at Disney. 

But, I would feel safe on the system.  It has better safety record than AmTrack or any Subway or driving for that matter.


----------



## littlestar (Jul 8, 2009)

An article I read said he was an only child and his father had died from cancer when he was very young. I feel so sorry for his mom - I cannot imagine losing a child, much less my only child.


----------



## RIMike (Jul 9, 2009)

*That is the truth...*



littlestar said:


> An article I read said he was an only child and his father had died from cancer when he was very young. I feel so sorry for his mom - I cannot imagine losing a child, much less my only child.




I did not remember for sure, but I think he was about 10 when his dad passed away...great kid, tragic accident...for him, but also for the driver of the other Monorail who killed him...know it must be really hard on him too.

If anyone has a copy of the video from the Conn family that said he made the trip for their grandson just a week before the crash when they visited Disney World, I would really appreciate it being posted on here.


----------



## pointsjunkie (Jul 9, 2009)

we were in orlando when the tragedy occurred and the orlando news was very quiet about the incident. like no mention the day after. we heard from CNN. i think they were keeping it hushed up because it was a very busy weekend for the parks.


----------



## Detailor (Jul 10, 2009)

pointsjunkie said:


> we were in orlando when the tragedy occurred and the orlando news was very quiet about the incident. like no mention the day after. we heard from CNN. i think they were keeping it hushed up because it was a very busy weekend for the parks.



We were there then, too.  I thought that the coverage that morning on local stations was fairly extensive - I saw reporting on the accident several times from 6am to noon.  

Dick Taylor


----------



## littlestar (Jul 11, 2009)

I think this must be the video of Austin in the front cab of the monorail with the Conn family a week before the crash. 

http://www.orlandosentinel.com/videobeta/watch/?watch=5029407a-0f2d-4569-99ce-a7b43bbab685&src=front


----------



## gretel (Jul 19, 2009)

*Train tours*

I had a "Behind the Scenes Train Tour" scheduled for next week. Disney called me and had to cancel the tour as guests are not allowed in the roundhouse during the investigation. They refunded my credit card.

I was pleasantly surprised that Disney offered me any other available tour for our family of four at no charge! They had no problem with switching to a different day and park as well.


----------



## RIMike (Jul 20, 2009)

*I rode the Monorail*

Last week I had a return visit to Orlando/Disney for a conference. We stayed at the Contemporary Hotel and I rode the Monorail.  Disney is a worldful company...the accident was just tragic.


----------

