The Amagasaki Derailment | A Short Documentary | Fascinating Horror

[@THESP-rz3hg]

An excellent lesson in why you don't want to punish people in a way that incentives them to hide their mistakes

[@Unownshipper]

Couldn’t have said it better. Negative reinforcement rarely seems to work better when compared to positive reinforcement.

[@blobofdespair]

Well said

[@stevie-ray2020]

Old saying; "The carrot works better than a stick!"

[@williebeamish5879]

@@Unownshipper Than why does the US incorporate so much of that fear in their corporate culture? Have seen it and been subjected to it multiple times in various work environments during my lifetime. I refer to it as "Theory X Management". Or as we say on the factory floor "the beatings will continue until moral improves". So sad on so many levels.

[@Astrologus-Auctrix]

@@williebeamish5879 it’s deeply ingrained in all of US culture, not just business. People who parent their children through fear rather than guidance and are convinced you can’t teach kids “respect” without making them afraid are everywhere. That’s why that stuff ends up in business, too. I imagine Japan is similar in this way

[@timbounds7190]

I saw a TV programme about this once. The comment I remember the most is from a parent of one of the passengers who died. He said that at first he blamed the driver for the death of his daughter, but as more and more was revealed about the accident, now felt that the driver was another victim of the crash.

[@YuBeace]

When Japanese people as asked what they dislike about their country, many answer with “It’s too strict.” This is definitely a testament to that. They should definitely start pushing “Safety First” a little more than “Punctuality First”. JR West definitely learned this the hard way.

[@danjackson2014]

I'd rather have strict.... Than the zoo we live in now in the west

[@princessmarlena1359]

@@danjackson2014 To be fair, we have nanny states in much of the west, but they also have incompetent authorities and selective enforcement of the rules (such as California).

[@sister_bertrille911]

@@danjackson2014 Something in the middle of the two would be best. Part of the "zoo" you mention is due to the freedom that so many prize.

[@YuBeace]

@@danjackson2014 Well that “zoo in the west” you’re talking about also doesn’t seem to like “safety first”. Smells like, “money first”, methinks.

[@princessmarlena1359]

@Margarine Snatcher if you say so. I’ve only been to France, and that was 15 years ago.

[@Stibick]

Thanks. I arrived in Japan just weeks after this happened. I remember having to transfer to another train line since JR had closed a large section of track. At the JR gate, there was a line up of train employees bowing and apologizing to every transferring passenger. It took me a long time to piece together how terrible this accident really was.

[@Lodai974]

this accident was a real earthquake in the Japanese railway world....JR changed a lot after that (It influenced the other JRs, like JR East and JR Central). was among others and particularly in cities with large urban rail networks. The installation of ATS-P (automatic braking if the train exceeds the speed limit for x second) followed very quickly and is used by all operators, private or not. there has also been a big change in the management of railway companies.

[@akschmidt2085]

Making the employees bow and scrape when they likely had nothing to do with what happened shows they didn't learn much after all.

[@xiaoka]

I was here when it happened. In Kyushu. Stopped riding in the first car on the train for a long time after that…

[@snowrunetunes6252]

@@akschmidt2085 well you have to understand the japanese cultural perspective on bowing and apologizing. they're not groveling and begging for mercy, it's their cultural equivalent of a somber palm on top of a handshake and a nod with some condolences. i'm sure it was performed earnestly and received graciously even if it looks bizzare and feudal.

[@rilakkumakumamon5670]

@@akschmidt2085 that how customers service industry work. Most workers had to low their egos and have to be ready to apology even though it's not their mistake. That what I learned and I'm a shit person who have a ton emotions so I quit 😅

[@uzaiyaro]

I cannot recommend reading JR’s website enough. Seriously, I have never ever seen language like it. The first line reads: “On April 25, 2005, we at the West Japan Railway Company caused the Accident on the Fukuchiyama Line, an extremely serious accident resulting in 106 fatalities and more than 500 injured passengers.” Links are in the video description.

[@garytanger965]

Very impressive, taking full responsibility....

[@uzaiyaro]

@@garytanger965 even more impressive is how public they are about it. It takes precisely one click to find mention of the accident. Go to the homepage and then click “about us.” It’s right there. Incredible stuff.

[@wintersbattleofbands1144]

Many people, companies, and nations could take a lesson from this.

[@measlesplease1266]

They have to or else japanese people will not respect them

[@DinnerForkTongue]

@@garytanger965 There's no covering it up with an audit that big. Some shit is plainly unjustifiable.

[@tomkandy]

It's strange how the timetables are strictly enforced, but speed limits weren't. I noticed it was similar on Japan's roads - everyone drives courteously, parking is very stricty, but the speed limits are totally ignored and seemingly unpoliced.

[@shanjida8353]

Didn't the derailment happened because the train was breaking speed limits for that curve.the driver under presssure made mistakes that caused the derailment.

[@Thekoodie]

@@shanjida8353 I think what OP meant wasn't that there aren't any speed limits in Japan, but they aren't really enforced by the authorities. Laws can be in place, but if no one enforces then then there's no real punishment for breaking them until a catastrophe like this occurs.

[@MrZoolook]

@@Thekoodie It isn't just a Japanese thing though. Most drivers in most countries feel secure enough about speeding punishments not being metted out, that they routinely break the speed limit on roads. I've heard drivers saying things like "You can go up to 15 miles over the speed limit and won't get ticketed" and "Speed limits are just suggestions here", it's an utter disgrace.

[@mournblade1066]

@@MrZoolook In Pennsylvania that's the law: You cannot be ticketed for going up to seven miles per hour over the posted speed limit. I know several PA State Troopers, and they have told me that they normally won't pull over anyone unless they're going more than 20 mph over, at least in rural sections of the state and interstate highways where traffic is relatively sparse. In fact, one told me that on Interstate 99 between Bedford and Altoona, he doesn't bother pulling over someone on that stretch unless they're going over 100 mph. (It is flat, straight, and has hardly any traffic.)

[@MrZoolook]

@@mournblade1066 Yes, which is the point. If the speed limit is posted as 50, but you're allowed to go 57 without fear of repurcussions, you get a situation where the authorities encourage and allow criminal behaviour. That's a problem from my perspective. There's no point in having speed limits if you don't enforce them, and literally tell drivers they can ignore them.

[@forgenorman3025]

Another series, I believe Seconds From Disaster, also covered the use of what's called confined space medicine in this disaster, which is a treatment administered to victims trapped under things. When blood flow is blocked toxins build up that can kill the victim when they're freed, csm pushes fluids into a patient before they're freed to flush the toxins away more effectively. A lot of lives were saved that way. I love these videos!

[@lucsmith2092]

Wow

[@theshermantanker7043]

He's been on a roll covering Seconds from Disaster episodes recently, though to be fair I was the one that suggested most of these SFD incidents to be covered :P Crush syndrome is what I believe you're referring to, a nasty situation where dead muscles disintegrate into toxic goop in a process known as rhabdomyolysis, that can then be fatal if it hits the bloodstream

[@bluegreenglue6565]

I had no idea this happens in some traumatic injury. Explains quite a lot about the ways I've seen first responders handling certain incidents.

[@KimberlyHolland0205]

That's fascinating. To be able to provide that life saving measure must be wonderful. It's bad enough to find yourself trapped in a horrific situation, let alone having a huge potential to die even if you are freed initially and think you are safe. I can see why toxins could build in that situation. Talk about bad luck!😞

[@rich_edwards79]

Japan lies in a seismically active region. Stands to reason that their emergency services would be trained in working with people who are trapped and / or crushed in the sort of confined spaces that result from earthquake and tsunami damage.

[@TheInterceptor12]

I remember this story from when I was a kid. The owner of the Ramen shop near my Grandparents’ place lost their daughter to this accident, and had to close down their shop so that they could raise their grandchild. I didn't realize what had happened to them though until I had returned to Japan about a year or two later. To this day, I've regretted that I never got a chance to express my condolences to them for their loss and to express my gratitude for the kindness they had shown me during my prior visits. I truly hope they have been able to find peace since this tragedy.

[@RaymondThePainter]

I like ramen noodles

[@wintersbattleofbands1144]

It may not be too late. See if you can locate them.

[@theshermantanker7043]

With all due respect, I doubt they ever will find peace. A daughter dying before her time will change you irreversibly

[@nomoretwitterhandles]

@@theshermantanker7043 Finding peace isn't about never grieving. It's about accepting what has happened and understanding that there is nothing you can do to change it. You can still mourn the loss of your child and go on to find peace with what was, what is, and what will be.

[@mstrider80]

It may not get out of Japan so much, but it's well known here that there were also instances of physical abuse of employees who operated delayed trains. They would be physically assailed and the driver was probably fearing that type of discipline in particular.

[@basbleupeaunoire]

So sad.

[@adde9506]

I can understand the problem of one train making many others late. Where I live, the trains only wait for each other if they are physically in the way, which creates a different service problem. But I cannot wrap my mind around the apparent inability of so many people in charge to rationalize what a delay of seconds actually means for people. Even if you delay the entire rail grid by a minute, by the nature of public transit, most passengers aren't on that tight of a schedule from genkan to genkan, and those that are will only need to walk quickly. If they want to have a disciplinary structure to that level of delay, fine, but it should be proportionate to the level of actual harm done.

[@zurirobinson2749]

What the actual fuck?

[@bocahdongo7769]

@@adde9506 Their timetable is so tight and full, it can created jam in their line. It can be seen from either the signal block distance is too short, or too much train occupied all of the signal block on entire line

[@efnissien]

Japan's railways aren't always on time... there is a chilling message that appears on the display boards occasionally, it's something like "Delayed due to human incident" and apparently is a euphemism for a 'suicide by train'.

[@rich_edwards79]

Did you know that in Japan, if you unalive yourself by throwing yourself under a train, your relatives are billed for the cleanup and any resultant delays? I think that would be a sufficient deterrent to make me choose a different method. I understand that there is a forest outside of Tokyo that many use for the purpose.

[@stormbornapostle5188]

@@rich_edwards79 That's an absolutely horrible policy. Why should anyone pay for the decision of another? That would never fly in any other civilized country. Additionally, if I'm going to kill myself, why would I care about ANYTHING in the aftermath? Utterly insane concept. And, judging from Japan's suicide rates, completely ineffective.

[@MrSabuskaChannel]

@@rich_edwards79 In Finland we do it with pills and alcohol or shotgun to mouth or other private way to do it. Government pays cleanup. I guess in Finland we have some standards for suicide. Public suicide are rare here. We have very high suicide rate for happiest country.

[@theshermantanker7043]

@@MrSabuskaChannel Someone where I live did it by piercing herself through the heart with some sort of sharp object a few years ago. Although really tragic I was and still am morbidly curious as to how she managed to pull that off

[@EXROBOWIDOW]

@@MrSabuskaChannel In the happiest country, those who don't feel happy may feel social pressure to maintain the "happiest country" reputation. They may feel that they can't admit they are struggling. This would make them feel even more alone and hopeless. Then would come the feeling that there's only one way out of the pain.

[@SparkieGoth]

Can you imagine that? The driver was so afraid of disciplinary action that he didn't instinctively apply an emergency brake that would have saved everyone's lives. I can't believe he was just 23 years old, too; a decade younger than I am now. Rest easy to him and all the other passengers who lost their lives.

[@michalkedrigern7653]

young boys driver...ouu its blamage, chance alive vs. penatly driver...no lost lives:(

[@moosesandmeese969]

Wouldn't have saved anyone the train was already entering the curve when he realized his mistake. Though it does show what he was thinking about that even when the train is flying off the tracks he still didn't apply the emergency brake. He was definitely a victim in this situation though.

[@horsesteam9173]

I was in Tokyo a few years ago and our train had been delayed by a few minutes. They publicly apologised over the loudspeaker and explained the delay. I live in Australia, where trains will run 15+ minutes late, with absolutely no details whatsoever

[@artemis7605]

Something I always go by when I find myself late somewhere is its best to be 10 minutes late in this world than 50 years too early in the next. When you rush you make mistakes.

[@zurirobinson2749]

Holy shit, this is an amazing quote. I want it on poster or something so I can read it every day. "50 years too early" also puts it into perspective how young the poor driver was. I'm the same age now and I can't even imagine having that level of pressure and responsibility on me. The super strict work culture in Japan is likely why a lot of Japanese young people have gone hikikomori. 😢

[@SadisticSenpai61]

There's a reason a lot of Japanese companies will have a position unofficially called "Loud American." Japanese corporate culture makes it extremely difficult for ppl to speak up and criticize their superiors/managers or bring up problems. So a lot of Japanese corporations have taken to hiring foreigners to provide that necessary feedback because a large part of that reluctance is kinda built into Japanese culture. And it's called "Loud American" because Americans are famous for speaking our minds and not caring if the other person wants to hear what we have to say. I don't know how effective that necessarily is and ofc the ppl filling those roles aren't all Americans either (and their job title is typically something less... offensive? Well, I don't find it offensive, but it would probably be seen as offensive by some ppl). But it is a good reminder that surrounding yourself with "yes men" who will never contradict you is never a good idea. We all need a "loud American" in our lives. lol

[@wzx6x6z6w]

I think Americans would need a quite few "quiet Japanese" right now as well.

[@SadisticSenpai61]

@@wzx6x6z6w I think Elon Musk in particular needs more Loud Americans around to tell him he's being an idiot.

[@wzx6x6z6w]

@@SadisticSenpai61 doubt it would work, brainwashing suits him better

[@SadisticSenpai61]

@@wzx6x6z6w Nah, he'd just fire them for hurting his precious ego.

[@sumiben5211]

But many foreigners end up becoming silent Japanese as well.

[@PenderTheTyrant]

Japanese culture always scared me. Every time it gets praised for efficiency and politeness i remind how alienating and punishing it can be. When taking sick days or leave days is seen as weakness and outright lack of commitment how can you trust the workers with lives as their responsibility? They have so many suicides and mental health issues...

[@tumslucks9781]

Americans commit suicide at over twice the rate as the Japs.

[@PenderTheTyrant]

@@tumslucks9781 Sure but Americans have a much wider range of mental issues and easy access to guns. I'd like to know the % of gun suicide over the others tho

[@rich_edwards79]

Like I said in another comment, every single human culture on earth has its problematic elements....

[@theshermantanker7043]

@@rich_edwards79 You make a very good point honestly, people rarely seem to understand that nowadays

[@PeriapsisStudios2000]

@@PenderTheTyrant America and Japan both have culture problems. In Japan, people are expected to give up their individuality and conform to a rigid, homogeneous system. In America, gun culture is rife with racism and toxic masculinity that basically tells men that they aren’t worth anything if they aren’t willing to take another person’s life. You know what both have in common? Mental health is not taken seriously enough in either country.

[@Haysey_Draws]

All credit to them for getting such an amazing network to run on such FINE schedules, but those penalties were so unjustified and humiliating!

[@pavelslama5543]

As a history student, I have to add that the extremely harsh discipline enforcement and low opportunities for feedback when it comes to the decisions coming from "above" was a frequent source of problems for Japan since its early history. Im not against harsh treatment of criminals, but when you create such an intolerant culture towards anyone who doesnt behave like a robot, you are only creating a new problem.

[@srahhh]

Thank youuuu for teaching me about this, out of all the youtubers I enjoy I think I trust you the most to be thorough, factual, and respectful every time

[@Boxermom0317]

This reminds me of the Metro-North crash that happened in Spuyten Duyvil, New York in 2013. In that case, the driver had undiagnosed sleep apnea which caused him to zone out. He was going almost three times the posted speed limit.

[@AEMoreira81]

I remember that very well. Sputyen Duyvil is within New York City limits. The automatic speed enforcement failed to slow down the train (positive train control). Both the MTA and the USDOT were faulted for not testing for sleep apnea or requiring its testing.

[@Boxermom0317]

@@AEMoreira81 IIRC, there was a similar accident in NJ not too long after that. As with the NY accident, the driver had sleep apnea. It was then that I began to wonder if that was just an excuse being used any time someone crashed a train.

[@ymustisignin]

Although some of your stories involve companies taking responsibility, it doesn't feel like many have been as thorough as JRWest here

[@fayeyother7336]

Finally! It’s Tuesday again. The tiny segment of my life that has structure. I wake up on Tuesday mornings (it’s 5:50am here in Georgia, US) and I feed my two Chihuahuas, fix my coffee and get right back in the bed to share in this very important fact bringers thoughts and words. I look forward to every Tuesday. Thank you, so much. We need another channel as well. ❤

[@tumslucks9781]

You need to get yourself a man.

[@fayeyother7336]

@@tumslucks9781 well I have one. So where does this comment go now?

[@gemagainst]

@@tumslucks9781 you need to get yourself a shower my brother, i can smell you from here

[@katiekane5247]

@@fayeyother7336 howdy neighbor, N. Georgia here. I've fed the cats & gotta walk my dog, Molly.

[@MindiB]

Chi lover here, sending hugs to your little guys.

[@danielboom72]

Thank you for sharing all of these stories Mr. Crow.

[@sunnysidesprout]

Thank you so much for posting in the early hours (at least on this side of the pond.) It's always so nice for the drive to work. ☺️

[@Stupid_Rat_Guy]

Could you do a video on the worst roadaccident in Finland's history? It's called the Konginkangas roadaccident. I think it would fit the theme of the channel and I find it interesting for the fact that I was born the exact day of the accident (in Finland, of course).

[@hotaru8309]

It'd be really cute if after listing the deaths or in the video description , Fascinating Horror mentions "Even on the worst days when horrible tragedies occur, we must remember some good things still occur. In this case, included is the birth of one of the viewers who goes by the name or potential alias of 'Hunter.'" Although, I dont know that's it's entirely appropriate.

[@Stupid_Rat_Guy]

@@hotaru8309 aw, that would be so cool :D

[@wintersbattleofbands1144]

Might be best to go into his profile and send a message, rather than leaving a comment. he may not have a chance to read them all.

[@robertgeorgewerner]

I really sounds like JR West learned from the consequences of that harsh punitive culture. But you're certainly correct in that there are many, many other places where such punitive cultures are either being adopted or exist with longstanding. Such a great lesson about the consequences of treating your workers such harshness causes many unintended negative consequences and often doesn't accomplish the positive goals you set out. Great summary.

[@MichaelCZUSA]

Nobody tells a story as well as you do. Thanks for sharing this tragedy.

[@MoonFairy929]

This is soooo sad. 15 seconds delay snowballed into so much loss of life. I work in a maker shop. Mistakes are ok specifically so we don’t hide them.

[@ErroTheCube]

That's so many lives gone.. But on the other hand, you're closing in on that 1 mill milestone! Keep the good work up!

[@SraTacoMal]

I'll have you know we measure delays on the U.S. in seconds, too. For example, my train this morning was 2,220 seconds late.

[@zurirobinson2749]

😂

[@Slightly_Classy]

Wow! You are getting so close to 1 million subs 🎉🎉🎉 I remember when you were a new channel! Love it!

[@bluntskull8515]

Wow, this day just came flooding back to me. I lived near Ikeda at the time and usually took the rival Hankyu line to go into Osaka. I never felt unsafe in any Japanese train ever but this tragedy just reminded me that things can take a turn for the worse at any time. RIP the victims.

[@DadCanInJapan]

I used to live in Nishinomiya and would pass through Amagasaki on my way to work. While I never used that particular line for work, I often used it to travel north so I recognized that area.

[@ridethasno]

2:15am here in Washington State - USA Sending love to whoever reads this. ❤️

[@mattw1393]

5:18pm in northern Western Australia. Hi from across the globe

[@MusicLeeSarah]

4:18am in Missouri, just south of St. Louis. Thanking you for the love and sending love back your way 💛

[@wildcat1227]

Hello from the greater Seattle area ❤️

[@joselineayikoru2310]

12:25pm Kampala, Uganda 🇺🇬 with love!

[@Solar_Symphony]

3:37 in Idaho! I was supposed to be asleep a while ago 💀 Couldn't resist watching the video once I saw it was uploaded though 👀

[@sorrel7554]

It's a relief to hear the rescue workers being careful about causing sparks in the garage. Worst thing to do in an emergency is to start another one.

[@somechristiandude2496]

4:17am in Manitoba Canada.

[@MusicLeeSarah]

Missouri must be on the same time zone! 💛

[@user-vr3hj7is6q]

I worked for a company that had a resource to self report if a mishap or accident occurred, I used this to report a mistake I had made and cited the wording between the two manuals caused my mistake. My reason was ignored and I was punished and embarrassed for nearly a year for it. When they asked me later about the incident I said not only was the root cause ignored but I will never use the reporting system again and will infact encourage others to avoid using it.

[@benderboyboy]

It's almost like abuse doesn't work.

[@theoheinrich529]

Once more another cautionary tale of the state of Japanese laborers and how their treatment by their bosses lead to disasters such as this.

[@ThatGuyKal]

I assure you this isn't unique to Japan. Workers creating dangerous scenarios to avoid disciplinary measures exists in all countries to some degree. Only after accidents does the public limelight allow the change in culture required to prioritise public safety over corporate culture/profit.

[@daruru42069]

good content as always, looking forward for you to cover Itaewon's halloween crowd crush

[@basbleupeaunoire]

Please consider doing a video on the Mexico City Metro overpass collapse. It was last year. 26 dead and 98 injured.

[@CoffeeMug2828]

can we just appreciate the fact that the entire rail system realized a fault and issued an alarm for other trains which gave another approaching train precious time to react? stopping at a mere 50 meters from a derailed train is barely avoiding an even bigger disaster.

[@timpatz1994]

this is a fantastic series. ive suggested this before and will do so again. please do one on the Allegheny Arsenal Explosion in Pittsburgh PA.

[@EIbereth]

I saw a documentary about this disaster on Discovery Channel. It's good to know that working conditions for workers are much better and that people can travel more securely now.

[@alfadasfire]

90 seconds delay in the rest of the world is nothing out of the ordinary, hell in some parts any delay under 5 minutes is welcomed, as the usual delay is far longer...

[@danielvanced5526]

I'm in the UK, if I had a SPaD immediately followed by a station overrun, I cannot see the signaller and control allowing me to continue. Timetable be damned, they would be removing me from that train. One relatively minor incident and you'll continue till a convenient place you can be replaced, but the second one is a big sign you're not in the right frame of mind to drive.

[@rich_edwards79]

Yes but what would be the penalty for such a driver? Demoted, maybe fired, but I doubt the UK would allow physical or humiliating punishments as happens in Japan. (That said, British trains aren't particularly safe either, they've had lots of nasty railway accidents resulting from driver error and outdated, poorly maintained infrastructure, and neither are they in any way reliable.)

[@fluffyfour]

I remember seeing another documentary which described how a friend of the driver's had been put on a 5 month re-education programme for being 2 minutes late for a meeting!

[@Duelkitten]

Good timing with the upload. Gives me something to do on my early morning walk to work.

[@dryb3301]

What's the point of living when your life is dictated to be spent 'efficiently ' every fkn second Japan must use robots instead of humans so the humans can have a quality of life before the eventual death This is such a tragedy

[@clarerameka1462]

An accident waiting to happen....and it did. Great to hear resignations happened and reimbursements given and education implemented.

[@TheIcyWizard705]

you know it both fascinates and baffles me as to how widespan the rail network is and how so many people live without cars. it's a weird thought that you can't just hop in a car and go where you want, I guess it's just different over there

[@ivyward1393]

trains in japan can get you literally all around the country in either less than or the same amount of time as cars, plus cars are very expensive, and japan is a very walkable country in general so japanese people don't mind walking 5-10 mins to get to a destination. of course, plenty of people in japan have cars too but its seen more as something for rich people, families, or people with specific businesses

[@pissant145]

Love it when companies take responsibility. Nice job, great video!

[@minirogue1989]

A respectful and informative telling of the disaster. I really hope you do the Granville disaster at some point

[@AaronShenghao]

The bigger problem was: why this happened to JR west but not 4-5 other JR companies like JR East or even the smaller private railways. They all have the strict time table (10 seconds late is considered late), but only JR west had a horrific accident like this. Hence this was why the many resignations and why the company seems very apologetic towards this accident. They know that on that day, their hands were also on the controls to keep the driver overspeeding.

[@Dachusblot]

"Dayshift Education" sounds like something out of a dystopian novel. I'm glad the company actually learned from this horrible incident.

[@thaqifazumi4001]

Something similar happened on 1977. The Tenerife disaster, 2 747 collide on the runway. Although the cause of it was the Dutch pilot took off without permission. The event leads him to do that error was the company policies. He was afraid to get punished by the company, and what's made the situation worse. He was well known inside the company.

[@mattheweburns]

It would still have been in the newspaper any incident where the train was this late but no disaster it happened. He let his balls get the best of them… I bet there are many other instances where disaster was averted and situations like this that would make good videos too! Really love your videos, very informative, and spooky. Please don’t change your intro music and never change your voice perfect

[@nightowldickson]

In the company I work in, we are constantly reminded about safety before schedule.

[@adde9506]

Years of driving a scheduled bus route has taught me that you cannot make up time between one street and the next. It just won't happen, even something as small as 90 seconds. It's gone, you aren't getting it back. The best thing you can do is remind yourself to "slow down to go faster." Putting your skills to work avoiding compounding errors is what will keep you from losing more time. My work environment is pretty hostile, but I cannot imagine being harassed just because I made any number of people have to walk quickly, even the thousands that this 90 second delay might have affected. And that really is the scale of the delay, walking quickly, taking the stairs, being less early. Poor kid.

[@Pippis78]

Not everyone in the 1st and 2nd car died, but (nearly) all who died were in those cars. The second car that bent around the corner had the worst death rate, but there were survivers too. Nearly everyone on the train were somewhat injured.

[@DIABETOR]

Fascinating that this guy felt so ashamed and dishonored by a 90 second delay that he felt the need to sudoku himself and everyone aboard the train to make up for it. Japan truly is one of the countries of the world.

[@clarkr1065]

Consequence of having an insanely high standard of living. Young man stressed about work performance that he thought he would cut some corners to help himself, only ended up costing his life and the lives of many others. Extremely sad and avoidable.

[@garytanger965]

@fascinatinghorror.... This was an Excellent video.. You kept hitting the main points & didn't stop.. I wonder what speed that curve, should have been taken at ?

[@seandelap8587]

RIP to all the victims of this tragedy

[@Toyamasami]

still remember this episode in second of disaster god that was emotional

[@villerintanthillith1762]

Reminds me of that one time I was riding a train at night and there was almost 1h of delay and I just thought "Huh, not bad this time"

[@amicanadian2946]

I was living and working in Ōsaka at this time, and was in the office when the accident occurred. I remember it being a very somber evening as news updates came in. A colleague of mine had a friend who had to identify one of the victims, not a pleasant experience. In following years I took the same train line probably hundreds of times, and you could clearly see the building where the accident happened. Trains would noticeably slow at that corner.

[@skunkrat01]

Wow, I mean there is a lot to criticise about Japan's harsh work culture, but their willingness to take responsibility for things that go wrong, especially CEO'S, is impressive and to be applauded. If I was a family member, I would be happy with how they've handled things. Bad enough to lose a loved one, but watching a company do the same things that caused the death day after day after your loss, that's where it really hurts.

[@betonarchese]

I was the head Funeral Director and embalmer on this accident. It was my first day of work in Japan. Still have nightmares.

[@fartkerson]

Sometimes fear of punishment doesn't work. Not that it's wrong to punish and penalize, but there has to be a careful balance. I can't imagine fearing the punishment of a 90 second delay.

[@daemon9449]

As my dad told me, it's better 1 hour late, than 1 minute of silence.

[@weijingburr2392]

I've played Densha de Go! I totally understand this man's predicament.

[@maxstr]

How did they get back on time after the accident? I imagine those lines were completely closed for months

[@smokejaguarsix7757]

The reeducation program JR had is common in Japan. Its just a matter of time before another accident like that happens in some other industry. Corporate sadism is a thing in Japan.

[@shanjida8353]

Rail didn't bocome this safe all of a sudden.its trial and error.

[@smokejaguarsix7757]

@@shanjida8353 100+ deaths in one incident to you is "trial and error" eh? How long have you worked for Japan Rail?

[@ianlanford6922]

Indonesian here. I had experienced delays more than 1-2h, ppl boarding on top of car, ppl boarding without tickets, stupid footballs fans ganging on train, throwing stones because rivalry, and other many horrible stuffs But now everything changed. Delays is minimal, we have ac on each car, pleasant feeling, and very cheap around 2usd perperson for hundred+ km of traveling. Personally i dont mind for delays. Because i knew that we only have single line, train will need to take turns. Prioritizing on long range one. I really glad that we changed so drastically over years. Bad side is ppl now need to book tickets from a week before. Because everyone love it lol

[@gabrielemanca9149]

Wow, being so harsh on such short delays and the whole work culture of the company feels very japanese

[@lmcustoms8618]

FH you should make a video about the Ashtabula Horror. A rail bridge that spanned a river failed as a train passed over it, dropping the entire train into a river and ravine. It deserves an in depth video!

[@imeechie8917]

I’m a train operator for The Chicago transit authority, in our curves depending on how tight it is we a prescribed reduced speed. Also we a ATC that tells you when to slow down, and will automatically stop the train if it isn’t put into a certain braking position within 21/2 seconds. We’d get a ticket if we ran ahead of schedule they don’t care if you’re late

[@pinkjoys1127]

That's a bummer

[@LPCLASSICAL]

I remember a british rail employee telling me in the 80s that drivers get a very strict telling off if they overshoot the platform. But Im fairly sure they were not put on toilet detail.

[@juliocosta5818]

Excellent, interesting coverage presented respectfully.

[@myragroenewegen5426]

How do you cultivate a work culture where people do their best because they see that it's for the best --where anyone incompetent can be efficiently let go, but others aren't living in fear of their employers? Such hard stuff in big companies. An railroad companies need to be big. This is such an instructive story.

[@tinak.356]

The Bullet railway is crazy!! So damn fast you can't even see it when it goes into the station.

[@Blanco8x8]

Japan's dark era of corporate perfectionism. It's good to know that the culture is more relaxed these days. People shouldn't have to die over the fear of imperfection.

[@nichelady263]

Japanese corporate culture can be so harsh and toxic, but I've never seen Western companies take responsibility for their failures the way they do in Japan. An American company would make efforts to maintain public image, but they would never prominently feature a catastrophe like this on their homepage. Japanese executives have been known take pay cuts to their own salaries instead of laying off employees or slashing the pay of their workforce because they acknowledge that as the people in power they hold the most responsibility for low profits or failed projects. It's admirable, but there always needs to be a healthy balance of accountability and understanding.

[@GabelhelmSogarbraten]

In my country train drivers be lile "90 seconds delay? Lets have a nap and make it 90 minutes"

[@BrettonFerguson]

Should have had a visual of how packed these japanese trains get, for those who aren't aware. When he talked about it took longer to close the doors at the stop, they literally have to push people into the carriages to close the doors. Not just seats full, every inch has a person standing, all pressed against each other.

[@aloser8703]

We are each responsible for our own actions, but damn that company policy really incentivized the poor guy to make bad choices at every turn, which led to worse choices. I feel terrible for him.

[@duchieu235]

so weird i watched this a year ago but it just feels like a couple months

[@MikeVal1369]

I was so hoping one of the disaster channels would get to this. I remember when it happened, thinking "Well, that doesn't look so bad" until I found out that the "front" car visible wasn't actually the first one, that that one was buried in the parking garage of the building.

[@birdsarecool6448]

What a terrible price to pay for ninety seconds! Kudos to the company for initiating better and safer policies, although I think that they had to respond that way.

[@philrabe910]

Wow! After an accident, JR identified a systemic track operation problem and promptly installed automatic safety devices! I think it was in high school- late 70's- after a horrific US train crash, the automatic system was mandated by Congress. Every decade or so there is another horrific crash and Congress again mandates the TPS... The actual system has evolved in that time from an analog system with thousands of miles of track side wiring, to a semi digital version, to the fully GPS system now that has a fraction of the physical equipment and wire of the first mandated system... The railroad barons are simply too poor to put in passenger train safety equipment. And Look at our freight train disasters!

[@Tindometari]

The tight, rigid scheduling was at the root of the problem. If your scheduling depends on trains being on-time within an excessively narrow window, the system becomes tightly coupled. This means two things: (A) Lost time, once lost, becomes very difficult to recover without bending or breaking other rules, thereby introducing safety risks. (B) Delays propagate through the system in a wave; any shock (such as an object fouling the track, a hailstorm, a passenger blocking a door from closing) may disrupt scheduling throughout the entire network. Airlines have the same problem, which is why a blizzard hitting Chicago can disrupt airline scheduling from Alaska to Florida, sometimes for days after the blizzard passed. The system becomes brittle; it has no slack in it to absorb shocks. This virtually *mandates* limit-pushing and edge-skating on the part of the operators; and the system's operation comes to depend on that, because those small shocks are constant and random. It's an inherent curse of scheduled transport networks in general: Tightly managed integration is extremely efficient when it works, but it's also not robust and when it fails, it tends to fail badly -- in a spreading cascade of failures. It's actually quite remarkable that the Japanese rails have as few problems as they do. The way to fix this is to build up slack in the system. One way is to schedule in such a way that there is slack time between stations: If the speed-limit time between two stations is five minutes, 'pretend' that it's six. That extra minute then acts like a shock absorber; it shifts all arrival-timing errors toward *early,* which is always better than late because then the train will still leave the station on schedule. True, there's a small hit on throughput, but the increased robustness against delays is actually an efficiency gain. Another way is to set normal cruising speed, say, 10% below the maximum safe speed and designate those last few kph as a "speed reserve" to give operators a safe and legitimate way to make up lost time. (It would not be hard to design a system that allows access to that speed reserve only if the train is currently running late.)

[@kevintemple245]

Damn. This happened on my 25th birthday and I've never even heard of it before.

[@123hee]

You should do a video on what happened in itaewon. it’s so terrible

[@jimbobur]

Delay of less than 2 minutes? Unacceptable. Better redline the train and crash it trying to make up the time. Truly a Japan society moment.

[@GL1TCH3D]

Japan: CANT BE 30S LATE! North America public transit: +/- 3 hours is good enough

[@DanielWSonntag]

In NYC, the subway trains just show up when they show up. No tight schedule.

[@michaelpettersson4919]

Backing up? I got stuck on a train that undershoot preventing me and many other passangers from disembarking in time. Backing back up to fix the botched disembarking was out of the question.

[@sushrutdongargaonkar2073]

I'd love if you were to cover the Amritsar railway incident in 2018. Masses of crowds had gathered on active railway lines to watch celebrations which were accompanied by loud fireworks and music. It drowned the train horns and two of them ran through the crowds. 59 perished

[@RBMapleLeaf]

I just want to clear up the statement of the passengers in the first two cars Not all died. Out of the 224 (92 in the first car and 132 in the second car) passengers including the driver. Tragically 100 people including the driver were killed. I was shocked myself to know that roughly 49 passengers survived in the first carriage and that 75 survived in the second carriage. In addition a majority of passengers onboard car 3 sustained injuries and sadly 3 died in this carriage. Another 4 passengers on unidentified cars mostly lilely the front two cars (But is unconfirmed) also died.

[@Prizzlesticks]

For future videos in Japan, just remember they don't have an 'a' vowel sound that makes the æ sound, which you ironically hear in 'Japan.' Their 'a' will always sound like 'ah' as in 'father.' Any diphthong you think you might hear is actually just two vowels together, as Japanese doesn't have diphthongs. So long as you remember their five vowel sounds, even if you get the emphasis on the wrong syllable, the word will still sounds mostly accurate. The sounds for a, i, u, e, and o are ah, ee, ooo, eh, and oh. Congrats, you can sound out pretty much any word in Japanese now. None of that pesky 'what sounds does this vowel make' nonsense. It's just those.