Western Railroad Discussion > "Setting Fire to the Tracks"

ABC Chicago reports it was so cold that they had to "set fire to the tracks" to keep trains moving. https://abcnews.go.com/US/coldest-temperatures-decades-expected-midwest/story?id=60694225

Of course, they were talking about switch heaters. 

 



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/29/19 16:48 by MSE.

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I thought the reporter said something about the bringing back steam engines


Nudge

Remember the unwashed masses out there are clueless if you said "swich heaters".

I was next to a control point near Flagstaff a few weeks or so ago, the Switch Heaters turned on as I was there.  First time I have seen them come on and it was pretty cool "and warm at the same time!"

SouthWest RailCams
CA, NM, CO, TX, AZ
https://SouthWestRailCams.com

CBS news also reported that "the tracks were set on fire."
ALLEN

Did they use the fire snake? I seen that stuff slapped on rails in the cold to warm them when trying to rejoin a break.

Hookdragkick Wrote:
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> Did they use the fire snake? I seen that stuff
> slapped on rails in the cold to warm them when
> trying to rejoin a break.

Not in the case of the photo with MSE’s original post. That photo is the crossing of Metra’s Milwaukee North and West Lines with the UP Geneva Sub aka Metra UP West Line. The flames are from the switch heaters.

There was another occasion in the last year or so where a Chicago news chopper caught some video of emergency track repairs where they did use a fire snake. As I recall, it was at Deval where the UP Milwaukee and Harvard (Metra UP Northwest) Subs and the CN’s Leithton Sub (Metra North Central Service) all cross.

Posted from iPhone

Lighten up... (Sorry for the pun)

Bill Deaver
Tehachapi, CA

There have been photos of other years by metra taken which are very nice.  What I beleive is the heaters are used to keep switches clear of ice/snow.

Bob

More information from Metra on keeping the tracks warm at A-2:
https://metrarail.com/about-metra/newsroom/the-signal/fighting-fire-switch-heaters-2

Posted from iPhone

Hookdragkick Wrote:
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> Did they use the fire snake? I seen that stuff
> slapped on rails in the cold to warm them when
> trying to rejoin a break.

In railroad parlance in my end of the US railroading world, a rope soaked in diesel fuel was laid along the rail and ignited to "re-temper" a bent rail after it was spiked back in place.  The practice was called "burning the rope."

As to the news story, just another example of the the main-stream-media's complete lack of journalism skills and just plain laziness.  The MSM has become essentially useless at reporting anything and has become, for the most part, a tool for manipulating public opinion through biased "reporting."  Real journalism and reporting has gone out the window. 



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 01/30/19 06:53 by WW.

They all have gone that direction, not just MSN. There is no more unbiased reporting on any media.

WW Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Hookdragkick Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> > Did they use the fire snake? I seen that stuff
> > slapped on rails in the cold to warm them when
> > trying to rejoin a break.
>
> In railroad parlance in my end of the US
> railroading world, a rope soaked in diesel fuel
> was laid along the rail and ignited to "re-temper"
> a bent rail after it was spiked back in place. 
> The practice was called "burning the rope."
>
> As to the news story, just another example of the
> the main-stream-media's complete lack of
> journalism skills and just plain laziness.  The
> MSM has become essentially useless at reporting
> anything and has become, for the most part, a tool
> for manipulating public opinion through biased
> "reporting."  Real journalism and reporting has
> gone out the window. 

I've never seen open flame heaters on the rail--pretty neat. 

Check this article from City Lab. They did some digging and also referenced TO. https://www.citylab.com/transportation/2019/01/polar-vortex-2019-chicago-train-metra-rail-tracks-on-fire/581635/

Hookdragkick Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I've never seen open flame heaters on the
> rail--pretty neat. 
>
> Check this article from City Lab. They did some
> digging and also referenced
> TO. https://www.citylab.com/transportation/2019/0
> 1/polar-vortex-2019-chicago-train-metra-rail-track
> s-on-fire/581635/

More media crap, i.e. "Get some old rags, soak them in oil, lay them next to the track, and set them on fire.". Apparently that City Lab operation hasn't heard of, nor learned about, gas fed switch heaters (either natural gas or propane).

HotWater Wrote:
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> More media crap, i.e. "Get some old rags, soak
> them in oil, lay them next to the track, and set
> them on fire.". Apparently that City Lab operation
> hasn't heard of, nor learned about, gas fed switch
> heaters (either natural gas or propane).

Well, they did take that quote from a post right here on TrainOrders so it must be correct, right?

Posted from iPhone

PROPANE!!!!!!