Eastern Railroad Discussion > CN Locomotive erupting in LA (Louisiana)

Does anybody have more details on the incident in Louisiana, whereby a CN GE locomotive blew a power assembly which wound up embedded in the living room wall of a track-side home?

I don't know who took them, but I received these photos in my inbox this morning. The location was listed as Independence, LA and the locomotive listed as the CN(IC) 2699, a C44-9W.

-Justin

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Extreme Makeover CN Edition ?!??!

it looks like a power pack ( head and cylinder liner) maybe . NASA we have a launch LOL

QU25C Wrote:
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> it looks like a power pack ( head and cylinder
> liner) maybe.

There was another photo that I didn't post that appears to be the piston buried in the wall of the house. Apparently that was what went through the roof.

-Justin

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Like Desi said to Lucy:

"You gots some 'splainin' to do!"

Seriously, is a catastrophic failure like this a one-in-a-million event or do locomotives throw pieces like this about the railroad periodically? I've never read about an uncontained failure like this before - at least with a diesel. I have heard of turbines throwing blades and puncturing the case but never a locomotive power assembly before.

Its happens. Had a GE throw a piston about 200 feet one night, took the door with it. Had another GE drop a pinion gear into a tie.
I've heard stories of pistons and other components that flew a good distance before.

some years ago L&N had a u30c have a failure like this out of Mobile,

Appears that when the engine blew it lost a good chunk of the hood over the diesel engine.

THe loco then caught fire and a volunteer fire department managed to put the unit out.
The L&N crew were amazed that the members knew about how and what their units were, come to find out there were 4 members were who where railfans and all 4 responded and were able to work and converse with the crew.

before the crew could stop the train, the loco managed to spray about a mile of right of way in lube oil and diesel fuel, it made a real mess, the L&N was lucky it was in or arroound 1980, today the EPA would have made the RR clean everything, from what I understood, the locals just cleaned up or left alone until the next rain.

I saw the loco at the L&N roundhouse in Mobile and have a picture somewhere, I just remember a big chunk of motor nad hood missing.

The story is that the crew isolated the U30C and the remaining 2 SD-40's pulled the 100 car coal train to new orleans by themselves

I guess the RR will be remodeling this house for the owners.Good thing nobody got hurt...:)

I cant tell by the photo's but it doesn't look like the rod came with it ( piston ) Makes me wonder what went first the rod or the head?

I wonder if one of the guys without a hardhat is the lawyer for the owner of the house?

NS 119 had a POS ex CR SD50 do the same thing a few year ago. Blew a piston out along with two hood doors and part of the handrailing. Shot it all out in a field.
Larry

Racecars too! At a local racetrack, I was flagging when a small formula car blew an engine just as he passed. A chunk of the block, with the dipstick still in place, went whizzing past me, leaving a smoke trail.

I hope the CN bills the home owner for the delivery of the parts. Perhaps a surcharge for the air express delivery??

TIOGA PASS