Trains.com

Big Derailment on the UPRR.

6291 views
102 replies
1 rating 2 rating 3 rating 4 rating 5 rating
  • Member since
    April 2003
  • 305,205 posts
Big Derailment on the UPRR.
Posted by Anonymous on Wednesday, May 4, 2005 6:37 AM
I just got an e-mail this morning that the UPRR just got into a huge de-railment at a place called Galt,Illinois yesterday. The de-railment caused a bridge to collapes and there are cars in the river. Latest is the UPRR is detouring over the IAIS and the line will be closed for at least Two weeks for repairs.
If anyone has any info Please feel free to keep up to date.
Thanks.
  • Member since
    December 2001
  • From: Austin TX
  • 4,941 posts
Posted by spbed on Wednesday, May 4, 2005 6:44 AM
Newswire said one UPRR train rear ended another in Neb. [:(][:(]

Originally posted by BNSF railfan.
[

Living nearby to MP 186 of the UPRR  Austin TX Sub

  • Member since
    June 2001
  • From: US
  • 13,488 posts
Posted by Mookie on Wednesday, May 4, 2005 7:01 AM
Have the Omaha Weird Herald here in front of me. The one in Nebraska was not too far from Fremont. One train tried to nose the one in front of it. 6 coal cars and two engines derailed plus 4000 gallons of diesel fuel. Watch those matches, please.

Had most of it cleaned up and track replaced by 6 pm last nite.

Moo

She who has no signature! cinscocom-tmw

  • Member since
    December 2001
  • From: Austin TX
  • 4,941 posts
Posted by spbed on Wednesday, May 4, 2005 7:03 AM
Thanks [:D]

Originally posted by Mookie
[

Living nearby to MP 186 of the UPRR  Austin TX Sub

  • Member since
    December 2001
  • From: Austin TX
  • 4,941 posts
Posted by spbed on Wednesday, May 4, 2005 7:05 AM
Galt is about 50 miles west Of Nelson & about 75 west of Rochelle. Just saw a UPRR WBer go past the Rochelle cam [:o)]

Originally posted by BNSF railfan.
[

Living nearby to MP 186 of the UPRR  Austin TX Sub

  • Member since
    December 2001
  • From: Austin TX
  • 4,941 posts
Posted by spbed on Wednesday, May 4, 2005 7:10 AM
Just checked the Galt IL newswire that they say is updated "continually" & there is no mention of any derailment as yet. [:o)][:D]

Originally posted by BNSF railfan.
[

Living nearby to MP 186 of the UPRR  Austin TX Sub

  • Member since
    April 2003
  • 305,205 posts
Posted by Anonymous on Wednesday, May 4, 2005 8:26 AM
spbed, Galt has about 40 people. Didn't know they had a newswire.BNSFrailfan, yes it wiped out a short trestle bridge. Cars are in a creek. not a river. Mostly lumber. Tried to get photos, but security is tight and only two roads in area. Every thing closed unless you have hi-railers on your truck.
  • Member since
    April 2003
  • 305,205 posts
Posted by Anonymous on Wednesday, May 4, 2005 8:27 AM
P.S. It's gotta suck to be UP MOW worker today between Galt and Fremont Neb
  • Member since
    March 2002
  • From: Milwaukee WI (Fox Point)
  • 11,439 posts
Posted by dknelson on Wednesday, May 4, 2005 8:31 AM
This was the Elkhorn Creek Bridge, a neat steel truss bridge over a bucolic little creek or river, with a gravel road bridge immediately south and parallel to the rails -- great for railfanning in a totally rural area. When there were no trains there were birds and fish and frogs to watch. The bridge is totally taken out -- this will be some project.
Galt is known to railfans because that is where some of the Northwestern Steel & Wire steam locomotives ended up in the weeds after that factory stopped running steam around 1981 or so.
Dave Nelson
  • Member since
    April 2003
  • 305,205 posts
Posted by Anonymous on Wednesday, May 4, 2005 8:37 AM
Dave , you live in Sterling, Rock Falls area?
  • Member since
    August 2002
  • From: Turner Junction
  • 3,076 posts
Posted by CopCarSS on Wednesday, May 4, 2005 9:29 AM
Dang...that was a neat bridge. Something tells me that whatever replaces it won't be as photogenic.

Chris
Denver, CO

-Chris
West Chicago, IL
Christopher May Fine Art Photography

"In wisdom gathered over time I have found that every experience is a form of exploration." ~Ansel Adams

  • Member since
    April 2003
  • 305,205 posts
Posted by Anonymous on Wednesday, May 4, 2005 9:37 AM
Chris, yea it was a neat bridge. The morning news showed it and it looked like several cars went thru the side before it collapsed. I think it's funny UP will have to spend some of it's hard earned licensing money it made from me. My son and I model this area.
  • Member since
    December 2001
  • From: Austin TX
  • 4,941 posts
Posted by spbed on Wednesday, May 4, 2005 9:37 AM
Maybe they will just take a unused bridge & put it in the place of the one that was totaled? What type train derailed? [:(][:(]

Originally posted by dknelson
[

Living nearby to MP 186 of the UPRR  Austin TX Sub

  • Member since
    April 2003
  • 305,205 posts
Posted by Anonymous on Wednesday, May 4, 2005 9:41 AM
It said on the news and from the pictures its mostly lumber and other commodities, nothing Haz.
  • Member since
    December 2001
  • From: Austin TX
  • 4,941 posts
Posted by spbed on Wednesday, May 4, 2005 9:41 AM
Yes just do a Yahoo search for Galt IL & you will get the newswire. This explains why there have no EBounder on the cam. All I saw today is 2 W/bounders. [:o)][:p]

Originally posted by RIRR80
[

Living nearby to MP 186 of the UPRR  Austin TX Sub

  • Member since
    April 2003
  • 305,205 posts
Posted by Anonymous on Wednesday, May 4, 2005 9:42 AM
OPS!
  • Member since
    April 2003
  • 305,205 posts
Posted by Anonymous on Wednesday, May 4, 2005 9:43 AM
BNSF, where does IAIS run. North to Savanna or South to Quad Cities.
  • Member since
    December 2001
  • From: Austin TX
  • 4,941 posts
Posted by spbed on Wednesday, May 4, 2005 9:43 AM
Well unless they put up the same exact bridge you will give the UPRR more $$$$$ as you will have to remodel your layout to match the new bridge! [:o)][:D]

Originally posted by RIRR80

Living nearby to MP 186 of the UPRR  Austin TX Sub

  • Member since
    April 2003
  • 305,205 posts
Posted by Anonymous on Wednesday, May 4, 2005 9:46 AM
Naw, too much work. Old trestle will work. Got too much time involved in rusting and weathering
  • Member since
    April 2003
  • 305,205 posts
Posted by Anonymous on Wednesday, May 4, 2005 10:00 AM
CopCarSS, you still home?
  • Member since
    June 2001
  • From: Lombard (west of Chicago), Illinois
  • 13,681 posts
Posted by CShaveRR on Wednesday, May 4, 2005 10:04 AM
"Fifty miles west of Nelson" would put you in Iowa.

Galt is, as others have said, just west of Sterling, at most 15 miles west of Nelson.

I've heard that it will take anywhere from four days to two weeks to get this line up and running again. Kind of sucks for us freight-watchers, though other lines will benefit from the reroutes.

I don't go back to work until tomorrow; by then I may know a little more about how the business is being handled.

Carl

Carl

Railroader Emeritus (practiced railroading for 46 years--and in 2010 I finally got it right!)

CAACSCOCOM--I don't want to behave improperly, so I just won't behave at all. (SM)

  • Member since
    April 2003
  • 305,205 posts
Posted by Anonymous on Wednesday, May 4, 2005 11:12 AM
I can't seem to find any info on this derailment...
  • Member since
    June 2001
  • From: Lombard (west of Chicago), Illinois
  • 13,681 posts
Posted by CShaveRR on Wednesday, May 4, 2005 12:40 PM
The IAIS is the old Rock Island, running south of our line and crossing the Mississippi River at the Quad Cities. I'm sure that UP will have to use IAIS, ICE (the ex-MILW, crossing at Savanna), CN (ex-IC), and BNSF to detour sone of the traffic, and will reroute other stuff via other UP lines, including through St. Louis and KC. Nothing official here, but I suspect that our traffic would be capable of swamping one or more of these lines.

Carl

Railroader Emeritus (practiced railroading for 46 years--and in 2010 I finally got it right!)

CAACSCOCOM--I don't want to behave improperly, so I just won't behave at all. (SM)

  • Member since
    April 2003
  • 305,205 posts
Posted by Anonymous on Wednesday, May 4, 2005 1:09 PM
How long will they be detouring? i was planning taking a trip west out of Chicago along the UP to Clinton and back for about 2 weeks now, since i finally got a free Saturday to do some railfanning. i think i might need to reroute my trip. i'll go where the trains are. Galt is a nice location to photograph at but i never got a shot there.
  • Member since
    December 2001
  • From: Austin TX
  • 4,941 posts
Posted by spbed on Wednesday, May 4, 2005 1:41 PM
To get to the IAIS does it affect the route they would normally take from Gibbons to Omaha? [:o)][:p][:)]

Originally posted by CShaveRR

Living nearby to MP 186 of the UPRR  Austin TX Sub

  • Member since
    December 2001
  • From: Austin TX
  • 4,941 posts
Posted by spbed on Wednesday, May 4, 2005 1:52 PM
Actually was just joshing you a tad! [:p][:D]


Originally posted by RIRR80

Living nearby to MP 186 of the UPRR  Austin TX Sub

  • Member since
    December 2001
  • From: Austin TX
  • 4,941 posts
Posted by spbed on Wednesday, May 4, 2005 1:56 PM
Well just eyeballed it off Mapquest. Should have done what I did now & would have found it is only 11 miles west of Nelson [:D][:p]

Originally posted by CShaveRR

Living nearby to MP 186 of the UPRR  Austin TX Sub

  • Member since
    December 2001
  • From: Austin TX
  • 4,941 posts
Posted by spbed on Wednesday, May 4, 2005 2:08 PM
Right now see a UPRR WB @ 1405 CDT on the cam. How does he get from the CNW to wherever he is detouring to? It looks like he is being pushed or there are 3 DPUs [8D][:)][:p]

Originally posted by CShaveRR

Living nearby to MP 186 of the UPRR  Austin TX Sub

  • Member since
    April 2003
  • 305,205 posts
Posted by Anonymous on Wednesday, May 4, 2005 2:43 PM
There hasn't been any Trains here since Yesterday around here. The Rails are getting just a little Rusty.
  • Member since
    March 2002
  • From: Milwaukee WI (Fox Point)
  • 11,439 posts
Posted by dknelson on Wednesday, May 4, 2005 2:44 PM
RIRR80: to answer your question I live near Milwaukee WI but learned to love Galt during trips to and from Galesburg Railroad Days over the last 20 plus years, and was fortunately enough to visit Sterling during the steam days, circa 1979-80 or so.

As for an Iowa Interstate detour I assume they mean the old Rock Island main from the Quad Cities through Joliet, unless there are other junctions they can get back on home rails from. That would provide some very photogenic area for UP photography if true, such as the famous round grain elevator at Sheffield IL, or the nice curve along the old canal at Wyanet IL -- featured on the cover of Trains a bit over a year ago in a feature on the Rock Island's big freight train.

Dave Nelson

Join our Community!

Our community is FREE to join. To participate you must either login or register for an account.

Search the Community

Newsletter Sign-Up

By signing up you may also receive occasional reader surveys and special offers from Trains magazine.Please view our privacy policy