Unbelievable

[Bird]

A pressure buildup? Yeah, I think you could safely assume that much.[img]/w3tcompact/icons/wink.gif[/img] I had heard that there were two officers among the wounded. One story on TV said their bullet proof vests were the only thing that saved their lives. But I hadn't heard what they were doing there.

Bird

[ERNIEB]

Al, just what I was thinking, especially after reading Patrick's post. I know nothing about steam engines, and had no idea there were so many accidents back in the days of steam.

Ernie

[r0GuE]

A pressure buildup,...
Boy those are some real detectives on the scene to have come to such an elusive conclusion so quickly!
A sarcastic phrase used often when I was a kid..
"no [censored] sherlock!"

Rogue

[Joe_W]

Being in Ohio, our local paper has followed this story from the beginning. The 2 officers were talking to the tractor operator because he operated the tractor on a recently paved state route, tearing up the new pavement. They were supposedly writing him a ticket when the tractor operator noticed that the water level was low in the boiler and he opened the valve dumping cold water on the red hot crown sheet above the boiler. The resulting explosion killed 4 and injured over 50, with one reportedly having burns over 100% of their body. It was previously reported that the tractor owner was having trouble with his water guage the day before. A truly tragic event. We have attended many steam tractor reunions in the Greenville Ohio area over the years, and it's always been in the back of my mind that these are a time bomb waiting to go off if not fully understood and constantly watched.
Joe W.

[Joe_W]

Another update:
In this mornings paper it was announced that another young man died on Saturday, bringing the death toll to 5. He was at the fair as a volunteer for the business he works for. There are still many people in the hospital, among them the daughter of the owner of the tractor that exploded, the 2 police officers, and a 12 year old boy that's on a ventilator.
The local politicos are considering regulations and inspections on future steam engine displays.

[ERNIEB]

Joe_W, have you heard anything that the expert investigators may have turned up?

Ernie

[Joe_W]

Hi Ernie,
They are still doing the investigation, and it may be some time before the official cause is determined, but preliminary reports indicate operator error, or sight glass malfunction. The sight glass is a water filled glass tube that gives a direct reading of the water level in the boiler. The water level MUST be higher than the top of the firebox when it is under steam. On old steam train engines, they had fusible metal plugs in the top of the firebox. That way if the heat got too intense in the firebox, the plugs would melt and steam would blow into the firebox putting out the fire (in theory). I don't know whether steam tractors have this same system or not. I doubt if they were as strictly regulated as the train engines were at the time. I've seen many of these tractors left totally unattended, with a full head of steam at steam tractor shows through the years. I always tend to walk away from them when I would see that. I've been interested in trains for years and I understand the dynamics of steam propulsion and it's dangers, and I've developed a very heathy respect for these old monsters. Even the little ones running 70-80 lbs. pressure can make a horrific explosion if not properly operated. The bigger ones can have 150 lbs or more operating pressure. Some of the late steam train engines had over 225 lbs pressure, but there were many more safeties build into them by the late 40's. Steam tractors were pretty well obsolete by the late 20's, so they never had all the latest safety equipment.