I do not know the first thing about law ... but this sounds strange: Some accidents uncover a reality that you would never expect. Two years ago a tragic train accident caused the death of nineteen people. Today, the factor was accused to be responsible for this accident. According to the newspaper (http://www.elpais.es/ articulo/espana/anos/carcel/jefe/estacion /Chinchilla/choque/muertes/ 2003/elpporesp/20060605elpepunac_1/Tes/) the Spanish Court considered in this case the manager of the train station responsible, switching the light on green and ordering the train to leave knowing that a different train was coming from the other direction. Behind this accident unfolds a world we do not know about. It is not for the human error which accounts for many incidents to be the main cause. You shouldn't be shocked by the fact that (a)person is held responsible. The question is, is this the right person to hold responsible. The facts are without doubt the right facts. The man was conscious, knew about the other train, ... But, the question is, whether a whole railway (communication) system depends on a single switch managed by the chief of the station. Or should a system of these proportions be equipped with a dual security mechanism; if one fails, there is always a backup ... What quality level may we expect from an infrastructure? And how much do we afford to pay for it? A Rail infrastructure is all about availability and security, preventing accidents to happen, more as in this case where the physical infrastructure is of a single rail. Any government in what ever country is already preoccupied with mad cow disease and bird flue. In this case, public health (but also security) is a national issue. Without questioning. If you walk across the street and you break your leg () because of a pavement-stone that is missing, public government is -- what I thought observing the many law claims -- responsible. Unfortunately, accidents like these need to occur to signal that the infrastructural level should be improved. However, the verdict against the station manager doesn't seem to be very credible. 2006 Hans Bool |
