metal-theft

Train Derails After Thieves Steal Tracks

Maureen O'Connor · 06/02/11 02:59PM

A train derailed in Taunton, Massachusetts yesterday after thieves apparently used a blowtorch to steal two 8-foot, 900-lb chunks of solid steel track. Luckily, the train was moving slowly when the conductor hit the brakes, so no one was injured. Though this crime initially baffled me (what the hell would you do with a 900-lb railroad track?) Taunton's police chief barely batted an eye: