I came across some photos on the Library and Archives of Canada site and the series of photos have me scratching my head just a bit.
I can pretty much put together the scenario and I can't help but conclude... What were they thinking!
We need a steel water tank in St. Valier, Quebec. No problem, we have a spare in St. Charles, just a few miles down the line.
Great, let's pick it up and move it. I've seen my son do this on his Lionel set. What can go wrong?
CN_watertank1 by Edmund, on Flickr
Slings placed and cranes ready to roll.
CN_watertank4 by Edmund, on Flickr
St. Charles Junction (MP- 0) tank off the ground and ready to roll east. I believe this is the beginning of the Intercolonial Railway at St. Charles Junction.
CN_watertank3 by Edmund, on Flickr
That HAD to have been some brave souls to ride those cranes across that bridge.
As top heavy as that load is, a stiff gust of wind would have easily toppled it into the creek bed!
CN_watertank6 by Edmund, on Flickr
Looks like power and telegraph lines were dropped here for clearance.
Now, the next move has me a little in awe...
CN_watertank2 by Edmund, on Flickr
My take on the events here are that the cranes with tank had to take a siding to let the passenger train pass. It would appear that the trackbed may have been a little soft here or the degree of curvature of the siding caused the center of gravity to topple the tank and one crane.
Unfortunately, the tank tipped just as the cab of the 6016 was passing by and came to rest directly on the tender!
CN_watertank5 by Edmund, on Flickr
I'd sure like to find some documentation or further information on this mishap.
I'll bet there was some interesting conversations around the bunk-house that night!
Regards, Ed
I think the tank perhaps is not resting on the tender. It looks to me like those wizards are running the train through under the tank.
No, really!
Ed
Looks like some MOW crews got bored!!! Is this a video or stills you stumbled across???
Steve
If everything seems under control, you're not going fast enough!
7j43kIt looks to me like those wizards are running the train through under the tank.
Well, you might just have something there. I see the conductor on the ground a few cars back and maybe they are inching the train under the tank. So much steam leaking from the toppled derric it makes visibility poor. The engineer leaning out of the cab blocks some of the view of the coal bunker on the 6016
The sideway stress on the remaining upright derrick has to be great with that lateral pull on the boom. Maybe they have the tank blocked and guyed to keep it from falling farther?
These are the only photos I have found of this event. Google Earth shows the deck girder bridge still in use.
NWP SWPLooks like some MOW crews got bored!!! Is this a video or stills you stumbled across???
Stills.
Here is the link so you can look for yourself:
http://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/lac-bac/results/images?form=image&lang=eng&FormName=Image+Search&PageNum=1&SortSpec=score+desc&HighLightFields=title%2Cname&Language=eng&QueryParser=lac_mikan&Sources=mikan&Archives=&ShowForm=show&SearchIn_1=&SearchInText_1=steel+tank+charles&Operator_1=AND&SearchIn_2=&SearchInText_2=&Operator_2=AND&SearchIn_3=&SearchInText_3=&Media%5B%5D=&Level=&MaterialDateOperator=after&MaterialDate=&MaterialDate=&DigitalImages=1&Source=&cainInd=&ResultCount=50
Very interesting!
And that's why to this very day I model CP.
Brent
"All of the world's problems are the result of the difference between how we think and how the world works."
In the shot from behind the tipped over crane, you can see the track underneath it. It looks to me like the track dropped, over on the left side. Not so much the rail, which could have slid to the right as the crane tipped, but the ties--they look lower on the left.
If true, that means that the track failed, not the goofy assembly above it.
Now, was the track overloaded? After all, it was in service, and had likely been traversed by loaded cars. And, if the load was extra-heavy, how did those dinky little cranes hold it up.
Still another and: did the right the load and continue the move? Did they have a choice? Cutting that boy up and moving the scrap would cost $$$C. So maybe they DID continue. Guys brave/dumb enough to try the move in the first place might well have continued being brave/dumb. And even lucky.
Somebody was going to have to do a rug dance in front of the Road Master's desk to 'splain that one.
Well, if they managed to right the thing, fix the track, and keep moving........
What's to tell?
Besides, they didn't decide to do this after having 3 dozen Guinesses (each)(Canada, eh?), all on their own. MANAGEMENT wanted that thing moved, I think. And it's kind of hard to believe Mr. Big told his employees to "just move it" and not ever consider "just HOW they were going to move it".
But, right enough, the details of it all would be fascinating.
You mean Molsons or Mooseheads or Labatts, eh? Guniness is Irish.
Now I'm going to make the safe assumption that the water tank was empty. So while that's a heavy load, it's perhaps not as heavy as you might think. And since they have it slung right below the tank, it's also probably not as top heavy as it looks. I'd be more worried it would take up an oscillation like a clock pendulum and throw everything off the rails to one side or the other.
--Randy
Modeling the Reading Railroad in the 1950's
Visit my web site at www.readingeastpenn.com for construction updates, DCC Info, and more.
Well, like so many "disasters" I think it was a combination of failures.
By taking the sharply curved siding the center-of-gravity shifted considerably, with no outriggers to stabilize the hoists the off-center weight "got away from them".
Tank_1 by Edmund, on Flickr
Add to this the shifting roadbed shown in the second-from-last photo, and once the weight started going there was no stopping it.
It looks like the big "nail" sticking out of the top of the tank was the water fill pipe which would be lowered below grade once the tank was set into its new position.
Speculation, of course...
Thank You.
NDGNote trap door to access roof and stove pipe for tank heater inside tank base.
Hi,
...and in some cases the center "ball" was an anchor point for a ladder that can be rotated around the circumference of the tank for painting or other maintenance work. Scaffolding could also be attached to this central anchor point.
https://www.tichytraingroup.com/Shop/tabid/91/p/7012/Default.aspx
Thank You, Ed
Back to the question..As a member of the train crew you would not need to explain anything to the supervisor because that did not involve your job.
I would feel sorry for the B&B supervisor since he would be the one in charge of the move. I suspect he would get his termination of service letter.
Larry
Conductor.
Summerset Ry.
"Stay Alert, Don't get hurt Safety First!"