Eastern Railroad Discussion > NS coal train derailment in VA Thursday evening

I haven't seen this story posted:

Rail union says Virginia derailment renews questions about Norfolk Southern's safety practices - ABC News (go.com)

Train stopped for overheated bearing and the crew verifies it. Atlanta HBD Desk tells crew that they can move train eight miles at 40 mph to a siding to set off car. Crews says we don't think so and holds speed to 20 mph, The train still derails putting 19 cars upright but on the ground.

Thanks for that report and link.

Here is a story from The Roanoke Times about what looks like the same derailment.  There is no mention of a cause, but from the description the location was at the Fagg siding west of Elliston.  The emphasis in the story is the blocking of a crossing that is the only access for families.

https://roanoke.com/news/local/train-derailment-blocks-montgomery-county-residents-from-their-homes/article_1410ffa8-1d0d-11ee-9450-3f16ec88480c.html#tracking-source=home-top-story

Jim

ts1457 Wrote:
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. Atlanta HBD Desk tells crew that they
> can move train eight miles at 40 mph to a siding
> to set off car. 

This is the secondary, but still critical, part of the on going hot bearing problem.  The railroad removed so many of the tracks where we could safely set off a bad order car in the past.  You can catch a bad bearing in time, but then the derailment risk becomes trying to find a place to set it off.  I have heard other crews instructed to move their train with an overheated bearing a long distance to set it off.  Other crews have heard it too, as well as railfans equipped with radios.

Notch7 speaks the truth. 

The carriers KNOW there are no tracks to set off in, and they are under the gun not to hog a crew....so they refexively and naively OK a bad car to run too fast. 

s/o tracks need manual switches.  manual switches need maintenance by m.o.w. workers.........

66

They used to and probably should go back to the practice of torching a hole though a wheel on the affected axle and running a chain through the wheel so it slides to the nearest crossing to meet a wheel truck for immediate change out. 
As a side note, the unions need to stop running to the press every time something happens, as they bring negative attention to there members and possibly place there members in harms way by making comments on these major incidents. Especially some of the unions comments about the major Ohio derailment. 



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 07/08/23 08:59 by NSDTK.

From the description in The Roanoke Times article above, this happened on the Whitethorne District (former Virginian) and not the Christiansburg District (former N&W), as was reported on TRAINS News Wire.  The newspaper reports the road blocked was Falls Ridge Road along the North Fork of the Roanoke River, which would be the Whitethorne District at Fagg siding.

Possible pay wall:

https://www.trains.com/trn/news-reviews/news-wire/ntsb-to-investigate-derailment-of-ns-coal-train-in-virginia/?_ga=2.114748935.1224303042.1688831947-836352602.1688831945



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 07/08/23 09:19 by Jimbo.

Jimbo Wrote:
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> From the description in The Roanoke Times article
> above, this happened on the Whitethorne District
> (former Virginian) and not the Christiansburg
> District (former N&W), as was reported on TRAINS
> News Wire.  The newspaper reports the road
> blocked was Falls Ridge Road along the North Fork
> of the Roanoke River, which would be the
> Whitethorne District at Fagg siding.

I know nothing about current operations, but it makes sense that a coal train would be operating on the ex-Virginian side. I don't know what happens when the Commonwealth of Virginia starts operating its passenger trains over that section of track which it owns or will own.  Will NS still be running freights over it?
 

The last hot box I had the over the road truck came and rewheeled it. We walked it to a road crossing. That was about 20 years ago.

Sam

ts1457 Wrote:
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> I know nothing about current operations, but it
> makes sense that a coal train would be operating
> on the ex-Virginian side. I don't know what
> happens when the Commonwealth of Virginia starts
> operating its passenger trains over that section
> of track which it owns or will own.  Will NS
> still be running freights over it?

I'm pretty sure that the transfer in ownership from NS to the state has already taken place.  There are no plans to change operations anytime soon.  Supposedly the two Roanoke Amtrak NE Regionals will be extended to Christiansburg in 2026, but no construction in that area has started and I'll bet by Virginia 611 license plate that it will be longer than that.

Jim


 

goneon66 Wrote:
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> s/o tracks need manual switches.  manual switches
> need maintenance by m.o.w. workers.........
>
> 66

Manual switches need to be tied into signal and PTC systems, where applicable.  One railroad, that shall remain yellow and gray, decided it was easier (read cheaper) to remove switches to set out tracks than to tie them directly into PTC.

But who needs to set out defective cars.  The salesman and the compiled statistics say that (fill in with any component) is good for another 100,000 miles.