When Lightning strikes a rail, can the bolt travel down the rail or does it go to the ground? And if it does travel the rail, can anyone get hurt, (engineers, people near the rail, etc.?
Just have to know
Thanks
Good question… I never thought about that one…
Do not stand around RR tracks during lightning, lightning will travel miles along the RR.
RR track is not a good ground, it sits on wooden ties and cannot be counted on as ground. When locomotives get struck by lightning you can bank on all the semi conductors being turned to junk. They do really strange things after a lightning strike.
Randy
as randy said lightning will travel for miles until it hits a insulated joint . goes thru a few signals (road crossing and block) . ive not been hit by lightning while on a engine yet. and not really looking forward to it either.
It can go down the track. If lightning is really bad they will send everyone in the yard home.
Wow, thats a bit scary…
What a great question!! I would have thought just the opposite of what everyone has said so far. So if lightening can do such damage by hitting a rail, engine or whatever, how often does it happen?
I grew up around trains (mostly passenger) in the 40’s and 50’s in the west Texas and southern New Mexico area and saw some magnificient electrical storms over the years. Don’t remember ever hearing about a lightening strike in a yard or effecting an engine. Just lucky, I guess.
I guess I won’t be too close to the tracks the next time it storms!
Willy
The lightning usually strikes the highest steel conductive element. This used to be the signal/ communications pole line. With these gone, the rail is usually next.
From multiple experiences, the world turns bright blue and everybody gets an “instant afro”. Know of one particular GP39-2R with ground relay problems following a lightning strike. (Quasimodo would have loved the cab of that engine)
[banghead][banghead][banghead]
About a previous posting above, I can understand sending yard crews home during a lightning storm. Who wants to stand in the middle of a lightning rod garden of steel cars?
A crazy groundskeeper would, and try to get a couple rounds of golf in too [(-D][(-D][(-D]
Take care,
Russell
Most train yards still have communications towers, so I would think that they would be most likely to be hit.
We have had tracks and commo towers hit in this area. I have also been fortunate to avoid lightning strikes. It definitely does all sorts of nasty stuff to the signal systems. Whenever it happens we have all sorts of signal issues and grade crossing signal issues with stop and flag orders.
LC
I think that it will trip what is called the ground fault relay in which will knock the locomotive off line. It can be reset.
And the GP9s just keep rolling along…[:)]
Our sand tower likes getting struck. I hate sanding engines in a storm. Switch stands make a pretty good lightning rod too.Randy
Randy, have yall ever had any of the sand in the tower become super heated before? It becomes a twisted black carbon substance… it looks a lot like melted plastic.
I don’t think the inside of the sand tower takes much of the blast, I’ll bet you would be pretty safe inside. The sand laying on the ground looks funny after a strike, like snakes.
Randy
Tall Hi-star stands as opposed to a ground switch I assume…
Yep. Most of the time I throw it in the grip for away from home terminal reading. You can never have enough of that…
LC
Not always. you can’t tell where lightning is going to strike. I’ve already seen lightning hit a switch broom that was stuck in the ballast… missed the iron totally
Randy