Passengers evacuating other passengers, official rescuers nowhere to be seen
EDITORIAL
Shame on Russia!
There was nothing we could do to help the injured. There was no doctor, no first-aid kit on board the train. It seems like there wasn’t anything to provide even the most basic assistance. There weren’t even any torches to look for the injured with. A lot of time valuable time was lost, time that could have been used to save people. The apparent absence of first-aid kits on such a train was simply unbelievable, especially in the light of the 2007 blast. No one even thought to have reserves of bandages.”
— Stanislav Aranovsky, Nevsky Express rail passenger, to Delovoi Petersburg
When a terrorist bomb exploded underneath a high-speed train halfway between Moscow and St. Petersburg on Saturday night, once again the greatest damage to Russia was not the loss of life, horrible as it was, but the humiliating light cast on Russia’s reckless indifference to the welfare of its citizens.
Once again, even though exactly this type of disaster had happened before, Russia was proved wholly unprepared to deal with it. One passenger said that not only were the railway employees asking passengers for medicines in the aftermath of the crash, they were unable to give basic information about evacuation procedure. Such employees are virtual slaves, paid almost nothing and given no training, much less the proper equipment.
Why? The answer is simple: The Kremlin does not care about individual human life. It never has, and it never will, because the craven people of Russia do not demand any better. They elect the KGB, the world’s greatest killers of Russians, to high government office, and then they turn a blind eye as every check on power, from local government to the mass media, is liquidated. Results like the Nevsky Express disaster are predictable when a nation behaves this way.
And now, it will all happen all over again. Even though they see this horror unfold before their eyes, even though the next time it could be them on that train, or that airplane, or those lethal roadways, the craven, cowardly people of Russia will sit idly by and do nothing to demand reform. They will allow the Kremlin to sweep all this carnage under the carpet, and that means that the next time blood flows on the Russian rails it will be on their hands as well.
By Monday, 26 people were confirmed fatalities in the crash and, inexplicably, 18 registered passengers were still missing, with no explanation forthcoming from the Kremlin. That meant the fatality total could be as high as 44.
It was exactly this callous indifference to the welfare of individual citizens, and this same relentless incompetence, that brought down the USSR, and it will do the same to Russia. No nation can survive contempt towards citizens by the government that is this intense, incompetence this profound, or apathy this appalling towards it on the part of the general population.
La Russophobe 
This is not the first time the Moscow to St Petersburg line has been attacked by terrorists only a few years ago an explosion de-railed a carriage. I believe 54 people were inquired and one or two people died.
The government knows this busy line is a prime terrorist target. So to me it is inconceivable that it took 2 hours before the first emergency service personnel arrived at the scene. Passengers were left to fend for themselves and the inquired. The question must be asked how many could have been saved if help had arrived earlier.
This shows in stark terms what a third world country Russia really is. Please bear in mind this is the most prestigious busiest line in Russia linking their two largest most developed cities. And even here it took TWO hours before help arrived.
This should also be a wakeup call for those that wish to spend vacation time in Russia. By all means go but remember you are entering the third world and prepare yourselves accordingly.
I hate to spoil your joy, but i’d really like to correct you a bit.
Not 2 hours – 1.5 hours accordingly to reports.
Then, dark time, no roads to the place, some 10 miles to the closest hospital. Do you seriously belive the ambulance in the US could arrive noticeable faster? I don’t.
How about if we break YOUR legs and leave YOU lying upside down in cramped conditions. THEN how long do you think 1.5 hours will be?
Do you mind offering some PROOF to support your facts, idiot? We REQUIRE that here on this blog.
And we also REQUIRE you to read our post before commenting. Our post is not about the time it took rescuers to respond, it’s about the total lack of facilities ON THE TRAIN, and the lack of response and training FROM TRAIN PERSONNEL.
If you can’t read our comment before commenting, you will be banned. It’s just that simple. Get it, ape?
In your post there’s the link to the ‘Delovoi Petersburg’ where you can find facts i mentioned. What else do you REQUIRE?
I answered RJohn’s post not your.
Ouch thinks 1.5 hours is ok what an attitude
Q) ever heard of Air ambulances Ouch.Only in the USA they would be on the scene in minuets,
PS it was 2 hours.
Where did you take your ‘2 hours’ number from? The link in the starting post says 1.5. I’m not saying that’s ok, but 30 min makes a difference.
Can you tell me more about the ‘Air ambulances’ that could help in similar event in US? Any link or something? I’m afraid you think too good about the US.
Ouch tells us it takes an abulance 1.5 hours to travel 10 miles
Q) are they still horse drawn in Russia?
No road, deep forest, dark time.
You need to try driving in that conditions once.
Just think, Moscow and SpB are more than 200 miles away from the crash site. So helicopter from any of these cities technically can’t arrive faster anyway.
Ouch, you really are a moron, do you think that only Russia has “dark time” and “forests”
What is most likely the case is that the response teams were indulging in the usual Russian pursuit of being drunk on duty (hell even Russian airline pilots make a habit of that).
BTW retard, most reports are saying up to 2 hours, and as R John says, even 1.5 is a travesty.
The railroads in the US have multiple layers of consideration for such events – starting from design of the cars for maximum safety and survivability – to training and drills for the local response teams in all the jurisdictions along the path of the railway.
Response teams would have been on the train in minutes, air evac. available for any transport needed to the best trauma hospital, whether 10 miles or 100 miles away.
I know that MChS (Ministry of Emergency Situations) in Russia has the helicopters available, including several provided by US and European rescue agencies. I am sure they are now used for “other purposes” – the fact that Shoigu has been Minister of it for so long – un-touched means this particular agency is not very coveted or endowed with resources – even for high value assets such as the links between the two top cities of Russia.
But hey, the real important people fly anyway right?
It is ridiculous to compare the USA emergency services with those found in Russia as Kavkazwatcher has already explained in his informative post.
As the article points out the staff are poorly paid and even more poorly trained, there is very little investment in safety procedures not even in a train service that is extensively used by tourists.
We know the Russian government use their available air ambulances for military purposes mainly in the caucuses, But as the USA and EU have given these life saving appliances to help in these kind of civilian emergencies, the question has to be asked why were they not made available especially on this rail-line that so many foreigners use?.
Again after this line was attacked in 2007 why didn’t the authorities draw up an action plan and train staff accordingly, all other countries would have done this as a matter of course. We know the Russian government care nothing about the welfare of their own citizens but you would think that at least they would want to protect the tourists who bring in the desperately needed foreign currency.
When will the people of Russia wake up and realise they are being represented by a bunch of heartless thugs who care little for them.
If it’s so ridiculous, let’s do it and have a good laugh together.
As i recall there happened an railroad accident in US about an year ago, and the death toll was about same. For some reason the “multiple layers of consideration for such events” didn’t work that time.
So did they have enough medicines in the train? How quickly ambulances arrived?
“But as the USA and EU have given these life saving appliances to help in these kind of civilian emergencies,”
What exactly are the appliances You are talking about?
Kim requires everyone here to back one’s words with links you know.
Ouch you try to defend the actions of your government and its appalling emergency services with a load of nonsense trying to compare apples with oranges. Can you not accept the truth?
Untrained staff on the train, No safety equipment, No action plan even though a similar attack happened 2 years ago, a 2 hour response time even though as YOU told us a hospital is only 10 miles away. Stop trying to muddy the waters with your mindless rubbish and admit the truth.
This was a third rate response from a third rate government in a third world country.
It shocks me that you seem to have no sympathy for those that have died or been inquired,All you want to do is defend your rotten Government, you truly are a product of Putin’s Russia.
I’m not trying to defend anything. I honestly don’t understand certain things, asked questions hoping to enlighten myself a little bit. You didn’t answer any, only threw crap at me. I guess it’s just the wrong place for such discussions. Sorry.
Well, the NY Times published an article today about the event, and also printed a map that I have before me right now. It shows two big cities very close to the place of the accident. One is called Tver and the other is called Bologye.
A medical helicopter or two could have made it from either city in 15 or 20 minutes, easily. Why didn’t that happen? An air ambulance in the U.S. would have definitely made it. They do it all the time
If “they do it all the time” it should be quite easy for you to find an example of the first rate response of the first world country such is USA. Just for me to compare.
Note, Tver is 200km away and Bologoe is a city of 25th inhabitants.
Precisely, this was indeed a third rate response from a third rate government in a third world country. It would have been a much better attitude if they just admitted it, and just tried to organize things better. Congo or Dominican Republic at least do not pretend to be a Switzerland.
However, a typical Russian gut reaction is to deny everything. In face of all the facts to the contrary, they will keep telling you that it was a first rate response from a first rate government in a first world country. And all the criticism is because of our inbred Western bias, or hatred, or whatever.
And therefore there is nothing to worry about and no need to organize things better — they are perfect already, you see. Nobody had ever faced darkness and deep forests and lack of roads. These unfortunate circumstances could not be overcome no matter what one tries.
MOSCOW (Reuters) – A bomb caused the derailment of a Russian high-speed train that killed dozens and injured 100 others, officials said on Saturday, raising fears of a new bombing campaign targeting the Russian heartland.
The attack on the luxury Nevsky Express on Friday night on the busy main line between Moscow and St Petersburg was the worst attack outside the turbulent North Caucasus since a string of suicide bombings by Chechen rebels ended five years ago.
http://www.reuters.com/article/topNews/idUSTRE5AR1CZ20091128
A new wave of Islamist attacks against targets in Moscow and other major cities would have unpredictable results, stoking fears about political stability and possibly spooking Russia’s stock, bond and currency markets.
Prime Minister Vladimir Putin is credited with helping to bring Chechen rebels under control when he was president from 2000 to 2008, so a new wave of attacks would undermine that achievement.
“This is actually a very serious political blow to the present Russian regime,” said Pavel Felgenhauer, a defence commentator for the opposition Novaya Gazeta newspaper.
A series of high-profile attacks could force the government to launch military operations against suspected rebels, a move that would increase tensions in the already turbulent regions.
The course was organized by North Lyon County Fire Protection District Division Chief/Training
Officer Scott Huntley who previously indicated the three hour course would inform firefighters and police officers on ways to respond to passenger train emergencies.
Last Thursday, Amtrak Manager, Emergency Preparedness Police and Security Department,
David Albert told a class of about 30 participants that the course would provide information about
how the railroad operates and safety training information when dealing with a passenger rail car incident.
Albert and Amtrak, Training Officer Charlie Cox offers the course to 24,000 agencies throughout
the U.S. and the NLCFPD was lucky to obtain such a class.
Attending the course, were NLCFPD firefighters, chief officers and District volunteer firefighters,
Lyon County Sheriff’s Office deputies as well as firefighters and law enforcement from neighboring agencies.
Albert covered railroad operations, dangers of railroad rights-of-way; avoiding hidden dangers and a whole host of other hazards.
Also assisting with the training was Amtrak Engineer and Safety Committee member, Matt Reidy, whose route is from Reno to Winnemucca, and who told the class he would like to develop a good
working relationship with local emergency responders.
Cox remarked that Amtrak realized the need to develop relationships with police, firefighters and
emergency responders after a railroad accident in Mobile, Alabama in the early 1990’s which
resulted in 47 fatalities. The accident occurred on a bridge, which made it difficult for emergency
responders to rescue injured passengers.
Albert added in Fernley, there are 20 freight trains that travel through this area each day, and two Amtrak passenger cars, as well as the Amtrak California-Zephyr, and with that amount of train
traffic, it could increase the chances of an incident.
The class covered such topics as railroad right of way, frequency of passenger and freight trains,
train speeds, bent rail, tunnels, and more.
The class was capped off with a trip to an Amtrak sleeper car, which was located on a railroad
spur behind Quebecore, a walk through tour of the car was conducted to point out emergency
access points, locations of electrical cables, batteries, and cables and other hazardous features.
A real shame this happened. And because Russians have a self-imposed shame-based society, nothing will change because of the embarassment that admitting “we could do better” will cause. People like this attack any one who points bad stuff out, so the country will never progress beyond “Kill the Messenger.”
Wow. Who exactly is killing the messenger? What do you mean?
Hmmmm, that would be you retard.
Could putin be creating another false flag to justify another GENOCIDE by the secular uncivilized barbarians in the kremlin, like they did Sept 1999 – Bombs destroy apartment blocks in Moscow, Buynaksk and Volgodonsk; More than 200 people are killed: Moscow blames Chechens who in turn blame Russian secret services; and the HOLODOMOR? Or use this to goad the russian people to go to war against another country?
Bomb hits train in Russian south, no deaths
Today at 20:42 | Reuters
MAKHACHKALA, Russia, Nov 30 (Reuters) – A bomb exploded under a train in Russia’s troubled Dagestan on Monday but there were no fatalities, police said, just days after a similar blast killed 26 passengers on a train from Moscow to St Petersburg.
The device went off under train No. 374 en route from Siberian oil town Tyumen to Azerbaijan’s capital Baku at 5:52 a.m. (0252 GMT), said a police spokesman in the Dagestani capital Makhachkala.
http://www.kyivpost.com/news/russia/detail/53988/
may i ask what is the government involvement into an operational task? as far as i know -basic politic bla- is that gov. applies laws draw by the parliament and and thinks about policies to be implemented accordingly. and i don’t imagine ogamagama going into us trains to check the medical kits.
this is entirely company’s responsibility to follow up with safety norms provided – blaming authorities here is like some ancient story of wiping the sea
Government owns their trains and railroads — company’s responsibility is the government’s responsibility in this case
Hey fish you are just like a carp floundering out of water.
With your twisted logic it is YOU that should be “wiping the sea”, you wasted commo space!
For both Fish and Ouch. Go to the link below, read and weep. Why don’t both of you quit denying you live in an accursed country.
http://www.lifeteam.net/
God bless your ministry, my Baptist brother.
Probably my english is too bad and people here just don’t understand me.
I didn’t ask for any advertisement. And i do know there are some medically equipped helicopters in USA.
I asked for an example of the quick ‘first world country’ reaction on such incident. So i could compare the reaction time and efficiency.
Ok, let’s still take a look at the site you recommended. In the IA they only cover 50 miles around Fort Madison. In GA – only 50 miles around Columbus. They don’t even cover all the TN where their network seem to be most dense. So this company doesn’t even promise to solve such problems.
Otherwise why should i weep after i know He saved us?
Hi, american loosers, what about hurricane Catrine? Do you think you better responded? Hahahaha….. In a matter of hous God-loving american citizens quickly became murderers, marodeurs and rapists, didn’t they?
That was a “reversion”
However, Russians have never been anything but murdering rapist scum.
Just ask all those who have suffered at Russian hands.
There is a reason you are hated in all of eastern europe.
Hi, russian loosers, what about hurricane Grachev? Do you think you better responded? Hahahaha….. In a matter of hous God-loving russian citizens quickly became murderers, marodeurs and rapists, didn’t they?
http://www.photoshelter.com/c/anthonysuau/gallery-slideshow/G0000xdB34UGg8I4/P0000ULw_ZrbtT2I?start=
http://www.photoshelter.com/c/anthonysuau/gallery-img-show/Russia-Grozny-1995/G0000xdB34UGg8I4/?P_ID=P0000ULw_ZrbtT2I&_bqG=35&_bqH=eJxzyvbz9fb2rDI2rkzx9cwsiTSyLHTJcTPJLnW1MrawMjQwsLJyj_d0sXU3AIKKFCdjk1D3dAtPE7UAkGgASDTUpzw.qiipJMTIU83dM97d0cfHNSgSmyYA.fEfnQ–&I_ID=I0000YTT5Oo_QumE
This too:
http://www.photoshelter.com/c/anthonysuau/gallery-img-show/Russia-Grozny-1995/G0000xdB34UGg8I4/?P_ID=P0000ULw_ZrbtT2I&_bqG=32&_bqH=eJzLTPfNSSnODsuKLHfMMPfxMSkzDQooi09Kz3C1MrawMjQwsLJyj_d0sXU3AIKKFCdjk1D3dAtPE7UAkGgASDTUpzw.qiipJMTIU83dM97d0cfHNSgSmyYASPwgYQ–&I_ID=I00001PlRfpwTlfQ
http://www.photoshelter.com/c/anthonysuau/gallery-img-show/Russia-Grozny-1995/G0000xdB34UGg8I4/?P_ID=P0000ULw_ZrbtT2I&_bqG=22&_bqH=eJzLTPfNSSnODsuKLHfMMPfxMSkzDQooi09Kz3C1MrawMjQwsLJyj_d0sXU3AIKKFCdjk1D3dAtPE7UAkGgASDTUpzw.qiipJMTIU83dM97d0cfHNSgSmyYASPwgYQ–&I_ID=I0000EpuWGLMgdqI
And this.
http://www.photoshelter.com/c/anthonysuau/gallery-img-show/Russia-Grozny-1995/G0000xdB34UGg8I4/?P_ID=P0000ULw_ZrbtT2I&_bqG=21&_bqH=eJzLTPfNSSnODsuKLHfMMPfxMSkzDQooi09Kz3C1MrawMjQwsLJyj_d0sXU3AIKKFCdjk1D3dAtPE7UAkGgASDTUpzw.qiipJMTIU83dM97d0cfHNSgSmyYASPwgYQ–&I_ID=I000035mNx7l6Tlw
Hi Robert,
Thank you for the slide show. What did the secular uncivilized barbarians in the kremlin do to help their citizens who were devastated by this merciless hurricane?
Incidentally, one of the Russian rocket artillery systems used to devastate the city was actually called “Hurricane”.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BM-27_Uragan
We are pissing on all of eastern europe…. and western also…. understand, Andryusha?
Andrew is just an harmless clown from the republic of Georgia. His country is quite far from Europe or America.
Georginiya? (as they now call it) That tells a lot…
Typical ” high class ” response from vodka
soaked , third world , mongoloid moscovites !
Don’t waste your time with them Andrew , let
them keep thinking that they matter , while
the whole world is entertained at their expense !
“mongoloid” no less.
Kim, will you tolerate such a racist?
http://medical-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/Mongoloid
“Retarded”, if you want.
Please don’t play fool, Robert.
Apparently Olexander meant mongoloid race and that there’s something bad in beeing mongoloid.
Geez, dude.
The disorder was also once called mongolism, a term now considered perjorative, and to be avoided in English. (It is still used in some countries). Other names that have been used over the years include mongol, mongoloid, mongolian imbecile, mongoloid idiot, mongoloid deformity, Kalmuck idiocy, Tartar, unfinished child, Langdon-Down syndrome, Down’s anomaly, and Down’s deformity.
http://www.medicinenet.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=945
Muslim rebel website took responsibily (allegedly ordered by Umarov himself).
Russians supsect an ethnic Russian former soldier Pavel Kosopalov who had converted to Islam in Chechnya.
We declare that this operation was prepared and carried out within the planned, early this year, and successfully carried out acts of sabotage on a number of strategically important objects of Rusnya, pursuant to the order of the Emir of Caucasus Emirate Dokka Umarov.
As previously repeatedly warned, in the spring Majlisul Shura by the command of the Caucasus Emirate, it was decided to transfer the sabotage war to the territories of Rusnya, along with strong blows to the occupiers infrastructure in the Caucasus.
Today, we carry out sabotage operations on electricity transmission lines, oil-and gas-wires. Many of the operations are under preparation status.
We declare that we will do everything possible to spread Jihad even greater in the territory of Rusnya to undermine its economy, so that Rusnya will not have the opportunity to use the Caucasus as its raw material base.
We have long been accustomed to the fact that as a result of such operations, Mujahideen are “accused” in a war against “civilians” of Rusnya, but we intend to conduct such diversions in future, which are the just acts of vengeance.
These diversions will continue for as long as the occupants in the Caucasus will not stop its policy of killing ordinary Muslims purely on religious grounds.
We also consider the population of Rusnya as accomplices of Russia’s government, which supports by its approval the bloody policy of occupation of the Caucasus and the brutal killings of peaceful Muslims whose only fault is their desire to keep at least basic norms of Islam.
But even despite this, by the order of our Emir Dokka Abu Usman, we will try to avoid casualties among the unarmed population of Rusnya, and will not consider them as a primary objective for operations.
In this year by the command of the Mujahideen, several intelligence-sabotage units were trained and sent deep into Rusnya to conduct operations on enemy’s territory. As the result, and the consequences of these operations have caused enormous economic damage to Rusna, we will continue to work in this direction.
We warn the leadership of Rusnya that unless they stop the killing of innocent Muslims of the Caucasus Emirate, and unless they terminate the activities of the “death squads”, we reserve the right to conduct appropriate military operations against the “civilian” population of Rusnya.
And sufficient is for us what Allah Almighty said in the Quran: “And fight against them as they fight against you.”
Headquarters of the Armed Forces of the Caucasus Emirate
http://www.kavkazcenter.com/eng/content/2009/12/02/11221.shtml
But did they really do it?
Russian military considers armored trains for railroad defense
http://rt.com/Top_News/2010-01-05/armored-trains-russian-caucasus.html
On Monday a cargo train was blasted in Ingushetia near the city of Nazran. There were no casualties according to the republic’s Interior Ministry.