ATU #757 members
will represent Tri-Met at
Rail Rodeo in New York
There are no bucking broncos or
charging bulls in the International
Rail Rodeo; in fact, there’s probably
no safer, politer rodeo anywhere.
But whoever wins at Coney Island,
New York on June 10 will be consid-
ered the best rail transit operator in
the nation.
Two Tri-Met MAX light rail op-
erators will be competing in this
year’s event, which takes place
yearly prior to conventions of the
American Public Transportation As-
sociation.
David Bennett and David White
will compete as a team representing
Tri-Met — one of about 20 transit
districts taking part. Both men are
members of Amalgamated Transit
Union Local 757.
More than 40 Tri-Met light rail
operators competed this year — tak-
ing a written test and then operating
under the watchful eyes of Tri-Met
training supervisor Ron Callahan.
Callahan, who won the event in At-
lanta in 1996, now serves as judge of
the local competition and coach to
those who go to the national event.
Out of the 40 Tri-Met contestants,
Callahan picked eight finalists, who
squared off May 7 in the Ruby Junc-
tion rail yard in Gresham.
“There’s not a lot of playing
around,” said Tri-Met light rail man-
ager Terry Dolan. “We’re not pop-
ping wheelies or doing slaloms.”
Instead, operators vied to see how
smoothly and safely they can move
the trains. That started with a ground
inspection: Callahan had booby-
trapped each train with more than 40
things that operators should notice
and report before starting up. Also
tested were customer service, pro-
fessional appearance and operating
protocols. Did they see and stop be-
fore hitting the handkerchief on the
rails? Did they respond correctly to
the “passenger” who boarded with a
suspicious-looking object that was
meant to resemble an anthrax at-
tack?
Tri-Met values the rodeo, Dolan
said, because it motivates operators
to get re-acquainted with the rules of
operation.
Bennett and White scored highest
At the close of a local “rail rodeo,” a Tri-Met MAX light rail train returns to the Ruby Junction garage, with
operator David Bennett at the controls. Tri-Met training supervisor Ron Callahan, left, judged the contest, which
tested safe driving and adherence to the rules of operation. Both are members of ATU Local 757. Bennett and
contestant David White were the local contest winners, and will represent Tri-Met June 7-10 at a national rail
rodeo in New York City.
and won the all-expense-paid trip to
the rail rodeo. They fly to New York
June 7 and have three days to study
the rules and equipment of the host
— New York’s Metropolitan Transit
Authority (MTA). On June 10,
they’ll compete using New York
subway cars in a rail yard on Coney
Island.
UA Local 290 members get hero status for rescue effort
Jeff Morgan, Eric Moen and Greg
Thrush — all members of Plumbers
and Fitters Local 290 — each received
awards for heroism last month from the
Washington County Fire Department
No. 2 and the City of North Plains for
their actions in rescuing three men in an
accident that involved a Toyota Corolla
and a tanker truck carrying hot asphalt.
Seven other men, all employees or
retirees of Morgan Machinery Moving,
also were recognized for their heroic ac-
Employees at Morgan Machinery Moving in North Plains, Oregon, helped rescue two men trapped in this automobile
after it ran a stop sign and plowed into a tanker truck carrying hot asphalt. Four of the men, members of Plumbers
and Fitters Local 290 and Millwrights Local 204, assisted six other co-workers in raising the tanker so that rescue
workers could extricate the passengers from the vehicle. The men received commendations for their heroism from
the Washington County Fire Department and the City of North Plains. (Photo courtesy of Joe Davis)
MAY 19, 2006
NORTHWEST LABOR PRESS
tions assisting in the rescue. They were
Joe Davis, a member of Seattle Mill-
wrights Local 204, Pete Uhler, Joe Mor-
gan, Lee Uhler, Scott Arlen, Nick Lau
and Josh Sohler.
Morgan Machinery Moving is a
North Plains business that transports
heavy machinery. It has 130 employees
said Jeff Morgan, president of the com-
pany.
On March 30, Eric Moen was head-
ing home from work when he came
upon an accident on Jackson School
Road a few blocks from where the com-
pany is located.
“The tires (on the asphalt truck) were
still spinning when he drove by,” said
Jeff Morgan. Moen immediately called
the office on his Nextel radio. “He told
us there was a bad accident and to call
9-1-1, and to get over there to help,”
Morgan told the NW Labor Press.
A tanker truck carrying hot asphalt
had come to rest on top of a car and was
spilling hot tar onto the vehicle. Two
passengers were trapped in the car.
Earlier that day, Moen had been
working from a 23-foot boom truck. He
told his co-workers to bring the truck.
In no time, the workers were on the
scene. When rescue workers arrived,
Morgan offered his crew’s services.
Using the boom truck, a large inflat-
able airbag and crib-ties, workers were
able to lift the tar truck off of the car so
the men could be rescued. The crib-ties
are large pieces of wood that are placed
under heavy machinery as it is lifted to
prevent slippage, Morgan explained.
“Once we got the rig up, they started
cutting right away,” Morgan told the
Hillsboro Argus newspaper. “Once they
lifted the roof off of the guy, he started
moving right away.
“It’s just fortunate we were right
down the road.”
All of Morgan’s employees are
trained in first aid and CPR. Arlen, a
volunteer firefighter in Banks, Ore.,
checked the vital signs of the men while
trapped in the car.
Passengers Venancio Riscajche-
Siquina, 19, and Domingo Sanchez-
Lopez, 20, both of Hillsboro, and driver
Jose Sanchez-Xiap, 20, of Aloha, were
hospitalized with burns, broken bones
and bruises. They have since been re-
leased.
The driver of the truck, Ronald Belt,
46, of McMinnville, was unhurt.
According to sheriff’s reports, the
Corolla was northbound on Northwest
Jackson School Road when it ran a stop
sign at the intersection with Northwest
West Union Road and T-boned the as-
phalt truck.
Rescue workers said the trapped
men were lucky to be alive.
Morgan said that without the boom-
truck, it might have been a half-hour or
more before a tow truck and the proper
emergency equipment were on the
scene.
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