Tuesday, February 03, 2015

Valhalla: 2.3





On February 3, 2015, six people were killed when a 10-car Metro-North train packed with commuters from New York City hit a car and caught fire on the railroad tracks in Valhalla, Westchester, New York. At the height of evening rush hour, the incident sparked a fiery crash that's also injured at least 12 people. The train out of Grand Central Terminal was going northbound on the Harlem line when it struck a Jeep Cherokee (that was stopped on the track when the R/R gates came down) at the Commerce Street crossing in Valhalla at about 6:30 p.m. 



Hundreds of passengers were being taken by ambulances and MTA buses to Pleaseantville.



In Norse mythology, Valhalla (from Old Norse Valhöll "hall of the slain") is a majestic, enormous hall located in Asgard, ruled over by the god Odin. Chosen by Odin, half of those who die in combat travel to Valhalla upon death, led by valkyries, while the other half go to the goddess Freyja's field Fólkvangr. In Valhalla, the dead join the masses of those who have died in combat known as Einherjar, as well as various legendary Germanic heroes and kings, as they prepare to aid Odin during the events of Ragnarök. Before the hall stands the golden tree Glasir, and the hall's ceiling is thatched with golden shields. Various creatures live around Valhalla, such as the stag Eikþyrnir and the goat Heiðrún, both described as standing atop Valhalla and consuming the foliage of the tree Læraðr.


Year of the Goat begins on February 15, 2015.

"Walhalla" (1896) by Max Brückner.


The Westchester Real Estate site is not shy about death and their Valhalla: "Valhalla isn’t just where Vikings go when they die; it is where smart central Westchester residents live. Valhalla, NY is a hamlet in the town of Mount Pleasant which is served by the Valhalla School District and punctuated by a quaint downtown, a scenic train station and Kensico Dam. Kensico is one of the largest dams in New York State and is adjacent to downtown Valhalla. Valhalla does indeed have a connection with many great people who have departed, as Kensico Cemetery is the final resting place of such notables as Ayn Rand, Lou Gehrig, Tommy Dorsey, Danny Kaye, and Billie Burke, the Good Witch of the North."

1 comment:

Rob Buchanan said...

The train-car collision occurred slightly (approx. 2 miles) south of the scene of another terrible car collision, the 2009 Taconic Parkway Wrong Way Crash http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2009_Taconic_State_Parkway_crash
8 people were killed. 5 of them were in a minivan that caught fire in the collision. It was the worst motor vehicle accident in Westchester County since 1934.