Nostalgia & History > Santa Fe 1948 accident - LAUPT

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Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 10/25/15 21:46 by atsffan.

Fascinating shot... taken before the freeway, when that was still a city street down there (and the PE's mainline from San Bernardino).

A true "oh s***" moment.

I don't think the brakes "slowly released" as the common practice was for the fireman to go back to the rear unit and engineer would cut out the brakes on the lead unit while the fireman would cut in the brakes on the rear unit. As it turned out I beleive the fireman failed to cut in the brakes. The escape tracks at LAUPT would only hold a four unit consist between switch and bumper. If the brakes bled off the power could not have picked up enough speed to go through a bumper, across a roadway and through a concrete wall. It was started under power and they couldn't stop because the brakes were cut out. Strange thing is, even with brakes cut out the emergency feature still works? Must have panicked and not put em in emergency? I worked with the son of the fireman that worked that train that day in the eighties (he also hired out on the Santa Fe) and that is what I was told and had heard from others as well.
JB

Amtrak came close to repeating this event during the 90's in LAUPT, but the units got stopped in time

This would be over the off ramp to Alameda St. today

The series of photos Fletcher Swan took of this incident can be found here:

http://www.larhf.org/collections/swan/index.html

About a year ago, I spoke with one of the ATSF mechanical people involved in the "rescue" of said F-unit. He revealed that intially, supervisors recommended that TWO cranes be used -- one placed down on Aliso St. and one at trackside. The big shots at the railroad nixed the idea because of the expense and the loco was retrieved using a big hook positioned on the station trackage.

-john

Can't see what became of the crushed bumper post. Anyway, I'm impressed by the strength of the retaining wall - and the structure of the locomotive.

Lots of possibilities for a caption contest.

Boy, it's amazing that those three skinny telephone wires were able to stop that engine when a foot of concrete couldn't do the job!

:-)

It's unlikely that the wires stopped the engine, though it's interesting that the pole broke before the wires did. I suspect that what kept it from going any further was sliding along the track on the fuel tank once the front truck went over the edge.

D F W


lwilton Wrote:
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> Boy, it's amazing that those three skinny
> telephone wires were able to stop that engine when
> a foot of concrete couldn't do the job!
>
> :-)

Each one of those "skinny telephone wires" (they're cables actually) is supported by a 1/4 inch steel support cable that is rated at 8000 pounds.

I think I see the bumper post under the tank of the engine in some of the left side pictures.

Jeff

atsffan Wrote:

> I should add that I believe it was either Trains
> or Classic Trains that published an article with a
> detailed explanation of how the brakes released
> and the train began its journey to the edge.

Trains Magazine, March 2000, page 68.

There are a couple of photos of that incident on the wall of Philippies French Dip Cafe,just up Alameda St.from Union Station.

pb Wrote:
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> There are a couple of photos of that incident on
> the wall of Philippies French Dip Cafe,just up
> Alameda St.from Union Station.

While at the time of the accident, Philippe's was located behind/ to the right/ of the Times photographer.
Near the scale and the phone booths, they have a color photo which shows the old location, as seen from about where the loco smashed through the wall. It's a Robert S. Julian photo which appears in "Growing Up With Trains: Railfanning Southern California."

They sure put those "No Parking" signs in their place.

For those of us that grew up eating at this restaurant the photo on the wall has been a legend of a legend in itself.



scottp Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> pb Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > There are a couple of photos of that incident
> on
> > the wall of Philippies French Dip Cafe,just up
> > Alameda St.from Union Station.
>
> While at the time of the accident, Philippe's was
> located behind/ to the right/ of the Times
> photographer.
> Near the scale and the phone booths, they have a
> color photo which shows the old location, as seen
> from about where the loco smashed through the
> wall. It's a Robert S. Julian photo which appears
> in "Growing Up With Trains: Railfanning Southern
> California."