This accident happened about 2 miles northwest of Harvard, ILL. summer of 2007. I am an engineer that works this line. For your edification and clarification: This camera is mounted inside the crew cab a rear-facing and unoccupied locomotive. A similar camera exists in the forward-facing lead loco and is also recording. The engineer (driver) does not get to use these cameras in any way. They are used primarily to add as evidence when a train is involved in a collision at a crossing. Train crews are typically informed of dangerous whether by train dispatchers. This railroad's policy is to stop all train movement in the vicinity of a tornado weather advised by the dispatcher or the crew determines that for themselves. The rumor is that the dispatcher did not inform the crew of the threat. Further, there is no whether monitoring equipment on this engine. The railroad operates in all whether conditions and simply observing gusty winds ahead of a train is no reason to stop moving. Also, this train is know to be 2 miles long at times. Obviously the whether 1 mile back can be much different than that ahead.

Note at 1:09 there is the sound of the air brakes applying in emergency. At that moment all the trains' brakes apply and the train starts to slow at its fastest possible rate. From the cameras perspective it is not until 26 seconds later that the head portion of the train comes to a stop. But realize that if this train is two miles long, the rear end of the train is probably still coming to a stop. It might well have been another 20 seconds before everything ended.