1/ Did these railway workers save the Kerch railway bridge to Crimea? An interesting account published by the Russian-controlled Crimea Railway company suggests that the damage to the bridge from the attack on 8 October could have been much worse. Translation follows. ⬇️
2/ Early in the morning, on 8 October, engine driver Yuri Kvashnin and assistant driver Viktor Proshin started their usual route. At 5:40 they set off with a freight train from Taman-Passenger station [on the east side of the Kerch Strait]. An explosion occurred 25 minutes later.
3/ Yuri Kvashnin recalls what happened: "When we approached the arches of the Crimean bridge, we heard a bang with an explosion, at first we did not understand what happened - our locomotive "jumped" and the light on the bridge went out immediately!
4/ We looked out the cab window and saw that the tank was on fire near the tail of the train! We had to act! To be honest, at that moment we were not thinking of ourselves at all, the main thing in our minds was to eliminate, to put it out, not to let the fire spread!"
5/ The train consisted of 59 wagons, they managed to detach 25 wagons. The weight of the train was about 4,000 tonnes. But for the professional and concise actions of the locomotive crew, the consequences could have been more tragic.
6/ Nobody panicked, nobody wasted a second and they acted according to their instructions.
Yuri Kvashnin remained in the cab to control the instruments and apply the brakes. And Viktor Proshin, according to instructions, stepped onto the track to visually assess the damage.
Yuri Kvashnin remained in the cab to control the instruments and apply the brakes. And Viktor Proshin, according to instructions, stepped onto the track to visually assess the damage.
7/ He saw that part of the train could be saved and reported the situation to the driver, after which it was decided to unhook the burning cars.
8/ The railwaymen realised that not only did they have to take the surviving part of the train to a safe distance, they also had to secure the burning fuel tanks so that they would not roll off the bridge towards Taman, which could cause even more damage.
9/ "I can still see it all before my eyes! We realised that we had to divert the full tanks, otherwise there would have been a worse picture. We had to run from the locomotive to the wagons several times, the shoes are still heavy.
10/ Each time I got as close as I could, secured part of the train, the rest were taken away. It took us 10 minutes," says Viktor Proshin.
11/ "Do we consider ourselves heroes? No! God forbid, of course, but if something like that had happened to the other crew, they would have done the same thing! What other way is there?"
12/ It's hard to imagine how Yuri and Victor felt in those moments. There was no electricity on the bridge, it was dark and the wind was blowing hard, the height above sea level was about 30 metres, and the burning fuel tanks could have exploded at any minute.
13/ Despite the shock of the first moments, the crew was not confused and handled the situation at the highest level.
Both railway workers are residents of Kerch. Both have been working on the Crimean railway for more than 15 years.
Both railway workers are residents of Kerch. Both have been working on the Crimean railway for more than 15 years.
14/ Yuri Kvashnin started his working life as an electrician at the Power Supply Station, and in 2004 he obtained a certificate as an assistant diesel locomotive driver; in 2019 he became a driver.
15/ Viktor Proshin joined the railway in 2006. He did not become a railway worker by chance - he followed in the footsteps of his father, who worked as a driver all his life. Now Victor continues the railway dynasty with dignity. /end
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