A “track image recorder” may provide clues to the deadly accident that occurred when a Union Pacific train derailed on July 4 in Glenview, collapsing a bridge and then toppling over onto the car of a couple who were later discovered to have been crushed by the train. This, according to the Chicago Sun-Times, is being reviewed by the Federal Railroad Administration and the train company’s investigators.

The fact-finders are counting on the recorder to learn why the derailment happened and how it led to the fatal accident. For its part, Union Pacific is pointing to a preliminary cause of “a track defect – a sun kink – caused by the heat.” The derailment led to a 28-car pileup, which then caused the bridge to collapse.

The recorder captured the train’s brake performance and speed — 37 mph — just before the crash. According to the newspaper, “trains that day were required to go no faster than 40 mph because of a heat order, which required trains to go 10 mph slower than in average temperatures.”

Meanwhile, the family of the couple who lived in Northbrook and were killed in the wreck has filed a wrongful death lawsuit, accusing Union Pacific of negligence and claiming the company failed to properly maintain and inspect its track.

The federal department concerned with train safety said, “Illinois recorded 11 Union Pacific train derailments from January through April. Of those 11, eight were caused by track defects.”

Another report on the derailment and deaths aired on WBEZ 91.5. The radio station interviewed Illinois U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin, who says he wants “the federal government to spot-check railroad infrastructure.” Additionally, Sen. Durbin “wants the Federal Railroad Administration to check in on parts of the railway that might be problematic — whether it’s because of bad weather or a change in traffic.”

“Railroad accidents are the responsibility of the railroad, not the state or federal government,” Sen. Durbin said. But since railways span many states and involve interstate commerce, the senator wants the federal agency to step up.

Another party looking out for the welfare of the public and communities where trains run is Operation Lifesaver, “a non-profit organization providing public education programs to prevent collisions, injuries and fatalities on and around railroad tracks and highway-rail grade crossings.”

The organization considers accidents at highway-rail crossings or on railroad property “real, but often preventable. Few people realize that in America, a person or vehicle is hit by a train roughly every three hours, and that’s a reality we’re determined to change.”