Interesting article telling how the alert officers of the Junction City OR police department spotted a trafic crash that had damaged the Union Pacific rail line and contacted UP dispatch in time for them to get the oncoming train stopped before it reached the damaged track. The train: Amtrak 509; Cascades Talgo service from Portland to Eugene.
From the track damage described (a hundred feet of one rail displaced by 6 inche) I have a feeling this incident could have been national headline spectacular if they hadn’t gotten the train stopped in time.
What a story! It’s great that some quick thinking did prevent a potential nightmare of a disaster for Amtrak.
So glad that the drunk “coward” of a driver that damaged the tracks and fled the scene was caught. I wonder now if the railroad is going to puch for that intoxicant to pay for the damages and repairs?
So ironic: This story didn’t command national attention, YET, had that Amtrak train come through at speed and derailed…it would have made worldwide news.
Life can be hypocritically wierd, sometimes. [sigh]
I agree,I also think our national broadcast system as well as the newspapers are bias,they only report what they feel people want to hear or will sell…sad[sigh]
The engineer “should” at least slow to restricted speed when they see the fuse. They may not know if there is something wrong or if a Trainmaster/RFE is giving them a test.