Chapter 278: Cab Over Wheels

Wilbert was made to feel right at home on the branchline, and he quickly made friends with everyone. He was set right to work shunting trucks at the lead mine, but he didn't mind this. The branchline was much longer than his Heritage Railway, and the trip gave him a nice view of the line.

"Say Thomas," he said that evening over dinner. "Why are there all of those danger boards up at the mine?"

"So that you don't drive your engine past them. The roofs of the mine shafts can't support the weight of an engine. I learned that the hard way."

"Yeah, and then I had to do all the work on my own when Sir Topham Hatt took away his branchline!" Toby huffed in a teasing manner.

Wilbert nodded in understanding.

"Danger signs are no joke. I know someone who went past one once, and things didn't turn out too good for him."

This got everyone's attention.

"Please tell us," They asked, and so Wilbert did

A few years ago, before I started working on my current railway, I worked on an Industrial Railway on the mainland. I was stationed at a steelworks, shunting trucks of material and finished products all day long. It was hard work, but rewarding.

There was also another man who worked there. I never learned his name, since he kept to himself most of the time, but I always called him Sixteen, since he always wore a shirt with that number on it. Sixteen's job was to take trucks of slag to the tipping site, where they were tipped over to allow the molten waste to run down the bank. Right before the site is a sign that says "Warning! Engines must not go past this point!" Myself and other other engine drivers knew to obey it, but Sixteen thought he knew better.

"Stupid board," he would say. "How do they know if no one's tried?"

"Don't even think of it," I warned him. "That sign is there for a reason."

The others warned him too, but Sixteen took no notice. Every day, he'd try and sneak past that point, but someone caught him every time. But no matter how often manager scolded him, he'd carry on all the same the next day.

"Silly stick in the muds," he'd say. "I'll show them."

His chance came one damp day. The rails were still slick from the night before, making it more difficult to brake. As he reached the tip, a naughty idea popped into his head. He pulled the brake lever a second too late, using the weight of the trucks to slip past the board and onto the tip. The foreman, just having come out of his office for some coffee, saw everything and waved him to a stop.

"Oi, you're not allowed there! Can't you read the bloody sign?"

"Not my fault. The trucks pushed me."

"Yeah right, get down from there! Just wait until the manager sees this."

Just as Sixteen was about to reverse, it happened. One minute he's on solid ground, the next the bank gives way, and his engine slides down to a rest in the slag pit. Sixteen tried to climb out, but found his arm pinned by the coal bunker.

"Oi, are you alright?"
"No! I'm trapped!"

"Stay right there, I'll go call for help!"

"What other option do I have?"

His audience gasped in shock. After a moment, Emily bravely spoke up.

"Was he alright?"

"Oh, he got out just fine. The EMT's came along and freed him, but his arm was in a bad way. Course, that was nothing compared to when the manager caught up to him. Fired him right on the spot, and sent his engine to the back of the sheds."

"Oh my! Whatever happened to him?"

"Last I heard, he found work on a preservation society somewhere else, and I never saw him again. He got more than he deserved, but I do hope he's learned some common sense."

The others grimly agreed.