Western Railroad Discussion > BNSF train wipes out entire elk herd

You can’t make this up: a train on the Fallbridge Sub killed an entire herd of Elk near Cape Horn on Friday. Recalls a similar incident over a decade ago in Wisconsin involving cattle and a CP train. https://www.kptv.com/2023/03/11/freight-train-kills-entire-herd-elk-washougal/

Posted from iPhone

This type of incident is not new, just  gruesome and unusual
England, 2016
Norway, 2017
Montana, 2016
Canada, 2020
 

Saw the aftermath of angus cattle killed by a train once about fifteen I think ugly was not worth seeing.

an eastbound out of Ark City hit about 35 horses ponies at Hackeny years ago. Not sure how they got out of the field, fence or gate open I guess. I've been through two heards of cattle, what a mess.

              Will the railroad be forced to put up signs for the elk now about the dangers of crossing the tracks and to watch for trains . . . . . . . in elk speak.??

Well hopefully they did what they do in Alaska, donate the meat to the local food bank. 

MRL plowed through a herd of cattle that had been stampeded by a lightning storm in eastern Montana over 20 years ago,

Ted Curphey
Ontario, OR

I don't think much of that meat will be worth much other than the wildlife in the area!!! 

NIKS

SP had a big wreck at Puente many years ago involving car loads of toilets and car loads of cattlle, does that count?

Out 



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 03/12/23 13:39 by callum_out.

dcfbalcoS1 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
>               Will the railroad be forced
> to put up signs for the elk now about the dangers
> of crossing the tracks and to watch for trains . .
> . . . . . in elk speak.??

No problem, just put up fencing and wildlife overpasses.  Studies prove it works.  It's already been done on some highways that cut through wilderness areas.  Washington state is doing it on I-90, and I think Oregon was an early adopter on US 97.

I don't remember any on Oregon's 97??

We hit one deer at 85 mph one night.  That was gruesome enough for me.

RR

out on the seligman sub, there was a LOT of wildlife on or near the tracks.

on the trips i was on, we were always rooting for them to escape...........

66

radar Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> dcfbalcoS1 Wrote:
> --------------------------------------------------
> -----
> >               Will the railroad be
> forced
> > to put up signs for the elk now about the
> dangers
> > of crossing the tracks and to watch for trains .
> .
> > . . . . . in elk speak.??
>
> No problem, just put up fencing and wildlife
> overpasses.  Studies prove it works.  It's
> already been done on some highways that cut
> through wilderness areas.  Washington state is
> doing it on I-90, and I think Oregon was an early
> adopter on US 97.

NJ has one or two animal overpass crossings on I-78 through the Watchung Reservation.  After 30+ years, the critters have mostly figured it out.

goneon66 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> out on the seligman sub, there was a LOT of
> wildlife on or near the tracks.
>
> on the trips i was on, we were always rooting for
> them to escape...........
>
> 66

I ain't gonna forget back in 01 when BNSF had to slap a 40 MPH Speed Restriction because Elk where getting hit left and right!

LocoPilot750 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> an eastbound out of Ark City hit about 35 horses
> ponies at Hackeny years ago. Not sure how they got
> out of the field, fence or gate open I guess. I've
> been through two heards of cattle, what a mess.

When horses are hit, the loss claim will show that every one was a champion race horse!  Any cattle hit are invariable prize-winning cows!  8>)

mapboy

That's it then. 

Ya'll need to put those cow-catcher thingy's back on the locomotives. 

You know like the one the Cannonball had in Petticoat Junction.  

That should solve things.  

Chuck

RailDawg Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> That's it then. 
>
> Ya'll need to put those cow-catcher thingy's back
> on the locomotives. 
>
> You know like the one the Cannonball had in
> Petticoat Junction.  
>
> That should solve things.  
>
> Chuck

The snow plow does a pretty good job of deflecting the bigger animals...but the impact insures that they will not be deflected whole or healthy. Nevermind the coupler sticking out...I will leave that to your imagination.