A reader has emailed us the details of what might have been the first victim of lockdown: a passenger train.
This story of a somewhat unusual victim of lockdown may be of interest: a CrossCountry passenger train. A freight driver went to work shortly after Boris Johnson’s announcement of lockdown number one. Mr Johnson’s edict had placed him, like many others, in the very difficult position of trying to arrange childcare in order to continue his work. He became so distracted by trying to resolve the sudden predicament in which he found himself, via his mobile phone, that he drove his train into a buffer stop. The train derailed and partially blocked the adjacent passenger line.
Less than a minute later, a CrossCountry passenger train came hurtling by at 85mph and collided with the derailed vehicle, suffering extensive damage as a result. Was this the first victim of lockdown? The Rail Accident Investigation Branch has the full report.
Thankfully, no humans were injured, but with a modicum of imagination, it is easy to see how the event almost led to major tragedy. Sadly, the more than 13 year run without a passenger fatality in a U.K. train accident did come to an abrupt end just a couple of months later. The BBC were quick to blame climate change, but we await the findings of the official investigation report.
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“The BBC were quick to blame climate change”
LOL! Climate change now causes trains to crash hahahaha!
That’s what happens when a government starts ruling by dictat with immediate effect.
We will all remember the numerous times hancock changed the rules for the next day via Twitter at 10pm.
As a sidenote, was the driver prosecuted for using phone while driving or is that permitted for train drivers ?
This accident probably WAS an indirect consequence of the lockdown policies. Here’s another category that fits this thought exercise:
How many people have got in their car, started to drive somewhere and then realized: “Oh, damn, I forgot my mask.” They then have to turn around and go back home to get their mask. (This has happened to me several times). Well, multiply this event by millions of people and it’s a certainty that some people have been involved in car accidents that otherwise wouldn’t have happened because they had to drive these extra miles. Some of these accidents might have just been fender-benders, that only cost money … But others no doubt resulted in serious injuries or even deaths. But these events don’t get counted in COVID statistics.
… Also, paying for the extra gas it took to drive these extra miles also costs money – money that could have been used for food for the kids, diapers, whatever.
And yet another “unknown unknowable” effect that lockdown policies had on people’s lives and careers ….
Consider the musical group or musician (a budding Billy Joel or Bruce Springsteen). In February 2020, this musician’s career is on the cusp of really “taking off.” This person’s band is playing more and more events at bigger venues, in front of growing crowds. The musicians are fine-tuning their craft and their careers are building momentum.
And … then … Screech! Full Halt. No shows. No gigs. No “buzz.” What these musicians had to deal with is is a forced sabbatical on their careers, one that has now lasted 15 months (and counting).
Now maybe some of these musicians can pick it right back up where they were in their careers in February 2020 in, say, July 2021. But I bet some of them don’t or can’t. Some of them might have even given up on their dream. A “big break” that would likely have happened, now won’t happen … or is far less likely to happen,
I’d argue such people also qualify as (indirect) “victims” of the lockdown policies our leaders mandated. But how do you quantify cases like this?
In the sports world it’s also easy to identify cases that probably fit this scenario. In America, many states cancelled high school sports. How many high school athletes who missed their senior year ended up losing athletic scholarships because they didn’t get a chance to show off their talents in this important year?
The coaches already knew the great players who had performed well in previous years. What they can’t know is how many unsung players who would have “burst onto the scene” (onto their recruiting radars) if they had been able to play their sport their senior years.
There are a LOT of such student-athletes imo, all of whom are indirect victims of the COVID lockdown policies. You can’t go back, push a button and give these kids this important year of their lives. It’s gone. We don’t know what would have happened if these kids had been allowed to play the games they love.