This morning found a signal bungalow for CP NE Hogansville. It was severely damaged evidently by loose lading on a south bound freight. Bungalow appears to be a total loss as bottom sills were torn out, track side panel jerked off & completely bent, north side door panel bent and unusable, roof half off, bungalow moved about 1 foot off foundation to the south.
When we called CSX signals; the person was incredilous that the described damage was as bad as stated and that the CP was still working and lit.
About 20 minutes later a northbound freight had a clear signal but crept up to bungalow to make sure would clear and not be fouled. Next trains came by at track speed. Now later today there is a tarp over the whole shebang. The bungalow was about 6 - 8 feet to west of nearest rail. Amazing enough a three head signal tower just north of bungalow and ~ 10 feet from nearest rail was missed.
Just one more reason not to stand too close to a moving freight. Wife was very impressed and said now she understandy why we do not pull up next to any lowered gate.
BALT: have you heard any report of damage and how the CP and signals were still able to work ? Cannot understand how wiring was not jerked out.
Am saving a picture.
Is it possible the damage was done by a rubber tired vehicle which then fled the scene? Strange driving can occur after the bars close. You don't say if there was a grade crossing nearby.
There have been a few instances, often after the consumption of certain beverages, where rubber tired vehicles have ended up on tracks where no grade crossing exists.
Jeff
The nature of the damage definitely is the work of something on a train hitting the bungalow. Otherwise the signal mast would have been hit. Just wonder if other things might have been hit at other locations. There was not any ballast damage. However the area under was disturbed due to bungalow being jerked upward. The sills of the bungalow were damaged by the jerking motion.
CSX is replacing bungalows in LaGrange so they might borrow one from that signal work.
My observations of CSX signal bungalows are that they are normally placed to the outside of the locations of signals - 10 feet or more from the track centerline. While lading on freights can become unsecured and do damage along the right-of-way, most normally it is the signal stantions and/or dwarf signals that bear the brunt of such damage. The biggest cause of incidental damage is normally broken steel banding the normally goes from car side to car side over the load - if the branding would break on one side of a car and then the banding 'flops' to the side where it is still attached to the car, it can cut a wide swath of damage.
In this incident it is concievable that such banding could have hooked the bungalow and moved it as mentioned.
Never too old to have a happy childhood!
Very likely, strap used is 1 1/4" wide x .029 to .035 thick and has a breaking strength of 5450#. Could easily catch something if the seal/clip was still on the end. It would act alwost like a hook. Think of it like a long flat rope with a knot on the end. Nasty stuff when it breaks.
Straps, Chains, lumber and multiple types of other dunnage can do that type of damage. When you clear to a place of "safety" while working on the track, you try to get beyond 25' from the center of track to avoid that stuff. When the sounds of dragging metal and sparks flying is noticable, you are too close. Still have vivid memories of what happens when the wheeled end of a TOFC pig trailer decides to get off the flatcar while the front end is still attached to the kingpin at speed. (Random damage for 30 miles, mostly signal damage)
As for the signal bungalow (doghouse), those rascals are pre-wired and CSX will probably fabricate a new one in about a week, depending on the complexity of the signal system at the site. Signal maintainers will be able to figure out their assigned work for the next month, probably with the assistance of a system signal gang if it's complex.
Several years ago, the northbound Auto Train left Jacksonville on the east (right hand) track. A northbound freight preceded us by several minutes on the left track. Somewhere around Callahan, Florida a load shifted on the freight train and projected to the left, away from the R-O-W. It took out one signal after another, including crossing gates etc. for several miles. We could see the destruction for quite some distance. Then we overtookl the freight train, which had stopped by that time. I cringe when I think of what might have happened if that shifted load had hit the through truss bridge over the St. Marys River, several miles farther on.
Tom
Several years ago, while we were preparing to board the passengers onto one of our Polar Express trains, an eastbound manifest came through Utica Union Station on track two - nearest the station. Our track is north of track one.
About ten cars from the end of the train, a large chain was hanging from a flatcar, bouncing off the ballast on the north side of the train - fortunately away from the track two platform. There was enough chain there that someone close to the train (or equipment similarly close - like a switch stand) would have suffered some damage.
Another real-life example.
We notified the CSX dispatcher, who presumably contacted the freight and got the situation rectified.
Larry Resident Microferroequinologist (at least at my house) Everyone goes home; Safety begins with you My Opinion. Standard Disclaimers Apply. No Expiration Date Come ride the rails with me! There's one thing about humility - the moment you think you've got it, you've lost it...
A number of years back, when I was living and working in Memphis; I was in traffic, waiting while an ICRR freight was occupying the Broad St. crossing on what was then the East Freight by-pass of the IC's line around the Eastern part of town.
The train had made several 'stops' while moving only a few car lengths to the North. During one particularly jaring stop; an 'elderly' boxcar's door started to slide on its tracks. [ At that time many railroads in the South maintained around their systems fleets of elderly, almost ragged-out cars, primarily for the seasonal transport of the cotton crop to Warehouses and Compressses in the Mid-South area.]. The boxcar, in question, was certainly in that catagory. On another jaring move, the door traveled to its 'stops' and fell off; landing squarely, on the hood of a very large auto that had pulled right up to the crossing arm. The surprised woman was speechless, as she watched that heavy metal door flatten the hood of what looked to have been a fairly new and well-kept auto.
I once saw a bridge plate come flying off a piggyback flatcar on an IHB train in Northern Indiana. It came loose and went sailing several feet before coming to rest near the tracks. It could have easily decapitated anyone nearby.
Working as a train order operator, before my carrier installed 'high speed TO transmitters', once you handed up to the head end crew, get back from the track as far as the geography would permit and start looking for markers from the caboose, while inspecting the passing train for any defects (and dragging bands and/or chains), once the markers were sighted coordinate your return to your hand up site so as to be in proper position shortly before the cab went by so the conductor or flagman could receive the orders. One does not want to be close to passing trains, the only things that can happen when you are close are bad.
The north end of the depot in Durand, MI will put railfans within 10 feet of the nearest rail. Not a very safe place to be even though there is a wrought iron fence there.
Norm
BaltACD Working as a train order operator, before my carrier installed 'high speed TO transmitters', once you handed up to the head end crew, get back from the track as far as the geography would permit and start looking for markers from the caboose, while inspecting the passing train for any defects (and dragging bands and/or chains), once the markers were sighted coordinate your return to your hand up site so as to be in proper position shortly before the cab went by so the conductor or flagman could receive the orders. One does not want to be close to passing trains, the only things that can happen when you are close are bad.
One time in the late 1970's, a RI operator had his train order stand (somewhat similar, but not exact, to the one in this photo http://www.railpictures.net/photo/383608/) had his pulled out of the ground by a dragging chain. I don't believe he had orders for that train. After he got it reset, he didn't think the bottom hoop sat right for delivering orders to the caboose. So for a while he made an extra set and had them ready in a long handled transmitter.
Trains on the siding at this location had to receive their orders by the operator handing them up. Only the main had a high speed stand. I couple of times I was allowed to hand up the orders to trains on the siding.
jeffhergert BaltACD Working as a train order operator, before my carrier installed 'high speed TO transmitters', once you handed up to the head end crew, get back from the track as far as the geography would permit and start looking for markers from the caboose, while inspecting the passing train for any defects (and dragging bands and/or chains), once the markers were sighted coordinate your return to your hand up site so as to be in proper position shortly before the cab went by so the conductor or flagman could receive the orders. One does not want to be close to passing trains, the only things that can happen when you are close are bad. One time in the late 1970's, a RI operator had his train order stand (somewhat similar, but not exact, to the one in this photo http://www.railpictures.net/photo/383608/) had his pulled out of the ground by a dragging chain. I don't believe he had orders for that train. After he got it reset, he didn't think the bottom hoop sat right for delivering orders to the caboose. So for a while he made an extra set and had them ready in a long handled transmitter. Trains on the siding at this location had to receive their orders by the operator handing them up. Only the main had a high speed stand. I couple of times I was allowed to hand up the orders to trains on the siding. Jeff
A tower I worked, didn't have high speed TO transmitters - 2 Main tracks. Tower was to the South side of #2 the EB Main track. Road Foreman's daughter working as a operator had orders to hand up to a WB operating on #1 Main track. She didn't hold the signal on the approaching EB train and got rolled between the passing trains. There is no substitute for good common sense on the railroad - it's dangerous out there!
In tune with the subject of this thread, this news story from the San Diego Union-Tribune has an unfortunately fatal object lesson on being too close the track. The interesting paragraph is as follows:
The two friends, a man and woman, both 18 or 19 years old, told deputies the victim had been standing on the edge of one the railroad ties, and didn’t realize the train could hit him from that spot.
According to an earlier story, the BNSF freight was doing about 40 mph at the time of the incident. There are way too many such incidents on our coastal line, even beyond the frequent suicides. It's got to be a tough route for the engineers and conductors with that kind of (you should pardon the expression) track record to deal with.
The sad part of the story was this happened a few days after the big outcry from the Del Martians about getting ticketed for crossing the tracks. NCTD management was telling the good folks of Del Mar that they didn't have much of a choice due to pressre from the FRA to enforce tresspassing laws. As RWM pointed out many times, the FRA rules are usually written in blood, and the recent fatality is unfortunately yet another reason for the rule.
Signal department began replacement. Maintainers had to hand dig under old bungalow as crane held it up. Suspect that was to prevent pulling wiring out. not finished yet on Tuesday.
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