Squirrel Had No Other Way Out

So, rather than walking outside and then away from the tracks to allow it to jump off or fall to safety, this f*cking moron walks back into the middle of the track where there's a good chance it will be trapped again. Hopefully the guy is deaf and won't hear the train. This is Darwin-level genius.

Deaf or not, there's a good chance he wouldn't hear an oncoming train. First, most of the engine noise emitted by a locomotive is directed to the sides. The front end blocks much of what would travel directly ahead of it along the track. Second, squirrels suggest trees near the tracks, which would muffle reflected sound from the sides. Third, it looks like hipster-boy is out hiking which is usually done in areas that have few roads. Fewer roads means fewer grade crossings, meaning the engineer will probably not be sounding the horn, which is the primary method of signaling a warning ahead of the train.

And to be sure, the top of that rail was rust-free and shiny. It's had traffic on it frequently and recently.

There is no reasonably safe way to walk on railroad tracks. A hiker should know better before they ever leave the hostel, just as a casual driver should know how to use a blinker and park inside the lines before they climb up in that Dodge F5000 PenisProxy.

I'm not sure I want the squirrel to survive, either. We need smarter squirrels and hikers.

Max