In a recent photo thread there was a great photo of some outstanding model work. It included a model of a steel trestle. The modeler included platforms with water barrels. My understanding is that water barrels are placed on wood trestles for fire supression; considering the fire-proof nature of steel, is there any reason to put water barrels on a steel trestle? Is there a prototype?
Yes, it’s to put out fires on railroad ties, just ask PC people about the Poughkeepsie bridge.mh
Well here’s your reason: http://www.krqe.com/dpp/news/local/northwest/train-trestle-burning-outside-of-chama
Steel trestles have a lot of wood on them too.
As already mentioned, the creosoted bridge ties will burn very well once a fire gets going. The heat can even be intense enough to damage the tops of the steel girders. But water barrels no longer serve any real useful function on today’s railroad and often have been eliminated as obsolete.
Several reasons. First of all the water barrel has to contain water. One or two bullet holes by a passing “marksman” looking for a target will drain it fairly quickly, and nature will do it a little more slowly by evaporation. In more northern areas it can turn into ice for several months of the year.
Secondly the water in the barrel needs to be applied to the burning timber. The usual dipper supplied only held a fairly small amount of water, and once you figure in the time to make the trips back and forth to the site of the fire, the application rate will only defeat a very small blaze. On a timber trestle the actual base of the fire may be part way up the bent with no way to apply water directly.
Thirdly, there must be someone at the site to physically carry the water. It’s unlikely to be track forces who now have very extensive territories. Cabooses are nearly extinct, and FRED does not fully replace the rear end crew, who might spot a train-caused fire while it is still of manageable size and deal with it.
Today’s railroads also have a more effective tool to fight a fire, known as a fire extinguisher. Any train will have at least one, and probably more depending on how many locomotives are present. The M/W vehicles also usually have one. Like the water barrels, of course, there still needs to be somebody there to use it.
John
Thank You.
A lot of water barrels in the north country kept clcium in the water to prevent freezing. mh.
That some pretty interesting information, in today’s modern age you would think they would have some more sophisticated fire suppression system but hey it’s cheap and it works
A lot of the reason I posted this question is that I recently walked across a Union Pacific steel trestle (near Cutler Reservoir, Utah). There were planks for walking, but no refuge platforms or barrels. This trestle is about 100 feet long and it sees a lot of the rail traffic between Utah and eastern Idaho.
I appreciate all the shared insight, and especially reading about water barrel maintenance from someone who knows first-hand.