Comments by "Brad Griffin" (@BradGryphonn) on "The Kaprun Alpine Railway Disaster 2000" video.

I think this case was doomed when the first reaction was, "Prosecute everyone!". The defensive walls and cover-ups by the accused corporations would go into full swing as soon as that was announced. In my humble opinion, the person/s who approved the mounting of a specifically 'household' space heater into a mobile carriage, as well as maintenance people who didn't examine hydraulic connectors properly are those responsible for this tragedy. They are the only two factors that caused this disaster. How could this have been prevented? The simplest way would have been to have portable space heaters designed for mobile use to be issued to conductors to use in the conductor's cabin while they are on duty in said cabin. The heater is returned to the base station at end of shift. Using this method of operation, the heater is always in sight of the conductor and the heater will not operate unless plugged in by the operator. It's an electric train. They can accommodate power outlets.
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I too was thinking, "how did so many people die?" I guess because I've never been in a situation like this other than a bush fire, panic in such an enclosed environment, combined with a fire behind (below) you, the first reaction would be to run from the fire source. It takes a clear head to make decisions that go against your initial instincts. As in the case of a bushfire (in my experience), finding a narrow area of the firefront and running through that to get behind the firefront was the smart option. Further, the fire I was caught in wasn't an intense bushfire but the firefront would have been about the distance these poor souls had to go through if they'd gone down, rather than up. Some singed hair and minor burns are a small price to pay for survival.
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@ianmacfarlane1241 Given the climate, that would create a Workplace Health and Safety issue. There are plenty of other heating technologies that don't involve exposed hot wires. Even pseudo-oil heaters that have a completely enclosed heating element would be an option. You can't expect workers to sit in a small cabin in the middle of Winter going up and down a mountain all day to not have some sort of heating. And by the same token, you can't expect a worker to wear thermal clothing all day in absence of some form of heating.
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