Railroaders' Nostalgia > A Most Unusual Incident

Sometimes people ask me “What was the worst thing you ever investigated?” I'm never sure if they are asking about the goriest, the biggest dollar damage or just what. So I adjust my answer to meet what they can handle. Never tell a lady or child about something horrific and only tell a man about things that don't require a lot of technical knowledge of railroading. Perhaps a better question would be to ask about the most unusual...

I was driving on my morning commute to the SP in San Jose, CA when I received a radio call about a fire and the death of an unknown person. Any incident involving a fire was very unusual and I can only recall a couple over my entire railroad career. The call should have been routed to me 2 hours earlier, but that was somehow overlooked in the confusion of few employees starting work at the time and the San Jose Fire Department handling the matter.

The fire scene was on a RIP track and inside an empty boxcar. Fire personnel and equipment were all gone when I arrived. As I walked up to the boxcar, which had been left overnight with both doors fully open, there was no indication that there had been a fire, fire fighting activity or even the smell of smoke. Peering into the car, I noticed a hardwood floor and wood sidewalls. But then I saw the body that the coroner had not moved. The man was lying on his back with his shoulders slightly raised, resting against the side of the railcar in a sleeping position. He had been fully dressed in very scorched and mostly present clothing. But his body was burnt up, showing a little bone and much ash. The wood wall behind him and the floor showed only the slightest sign of scorching and no sign that the wood ever caught fire!

Evidence pointed to spontaneous combustion but never had I encountered anyone who had actually seen such a horrendous thing. Since that day I have done further reading and learned more about it. It may be caused by an electrical disturbance in the human nervous system but is so rare I question how there can be experts on the subject. I only know I do not want to ever see something like that again.

Interesting, I've read about SHC and the general conclusion of a number of investigations is apparently that there's a common theme that causes it - namely that despite initial appearances there's an external source of ignition such as a candle, cigarette, fire etc and that in the right conditions, subcutaneous fat (fat beneath the skin) manages to catch fire and basically smoulders, possibly with clothing acting like a wick.
Most cases involve people in poor health, relatively immobile, asleep etc. which all seems logical.

Interesting, George Noory had a guest on talking about this last week one night.

Never heard of him before, so I looked up George Noory. Sounds like he specializes in phenomena that may or may not exist or at least be very misunderstood.

jst3751 Wrote:
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> Interesting, George Noory had a guest on talking
> about this last week one night.

If you are having a hard time sleeping George is your man. Love Coast To Coast on the a m dial.

Im an avid listner to the show. A coworker turned me on to it about 12 years ago while we worked nightshift.
JC

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Westbound Wrote:
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> Never heard of him before, so I looked up George
> Noory. Sounds like he specializes in phenomena
> that may or may not exist or at least be very
> misunderstood.

Art Bell started the show Coast to Coast back in the 80's. George Noory became the host a time after Art Bell "retired" from the show.

The show is basically a forum for those wishing to speak their beliefs that the other talk shows during the day would never allow to be on.

It is entertaining to listen to if you accept it for what it is, and many many truck drivers use it as a form of entertainment during long nights to help stay awake.

I have been listening off and on since the late 80's.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/17/18 11:58 by jst3751.

Per Bill Handel on KFI radio in Los Angeles. To listen to Noory's show one must wear a aluminum foil hat and like martian anal probes.

I was never a huge fan of Coast-to-Coast but I remember it used to always be on in the switchman's shanty in LA.

There are 3 kinds of listeners of Coast to Coast AM:

1) Those that listen to the content being talked about.
2) Those that listen for the entertainment value.
3) Those that listen for background noise.

My self, the first 20 minutes is number 2 and the rest is number 3.

Speaking of Art Bell, for the train crews; have you seen "odd" things at night that would be considered "para-normal'?? UFO's shadow people big foot etc.?? I worked at Norfolk airport here in the Tidewater area and I have seen "shadow people" on the ramp at night between the parked aircraft. It was different. Jim

I used to listen to "Coast to Coast" quite a bit. It was very entertaining. And almost entirely unbelievable.