Steve, Always wondered what the curve at Main Street was good
for..........Bill
----- Original Message -----
From: <hold-on@s...>
To: <BRHSlist@egroups.com>
Sent: Monday, August 21, 2000 7:16 PM
Subject: Re: [BRHSlist] Coupling the Air
>
>
> To the list
> I can atest to the roll a way problem with bottled air. I won a 1988 BN
Safety
> Award for rolling 120+ or - cars down the West Burlington Hill on XMas
eve.
> As the 2nd trick Ottumwa Dispatcher I had a 491 go west thru Burlington
and stop
> for a pickup at West B. It was a cold day and 491 wanted to get over the
road and
> home for the holiday. The wayfreight was getting ready to head to
Galesburg out
> of the yard downtown. I am one of the few who leave my radios on
monitor(So you
> can tell where your trains are at and what is going on) I could hear both
491
> working as the wayfreight got ready to leave. I lined the wayfreight out
and
> across the bridge. In the mean time I heard 491 head back out to the main
to get
> his rearend. And heard the ground man ask the engineer if he knew where
the
> train was at. "You don't think it rolled away do you" As the CTC approach
dinged
> on the Westward track. I reached over and flipped the radio on as I
flipped the
> CTC machine to stop for the wayfreight and told them to head for the hills
as it
> sounded like 491's train was coming down on top of them. They ran in to
the
> clear and the time was running on the CTC. I had hoped it would run down
and I
> could line the runaway across the bridge. The cars come down thru
Downtown
> Burlington reported at 60 MPH. Being a holiday evening no one was out and
about
> as the crossing flashers did not start in time to protect the crossings.
Due to
> the excess speed the cars piled up at the kink just before the bridge
blocking
> both mains and the K Line Main.. SO we called the Supt. and said Merry
> Christmas??? The wayfreight would have been in the middle of the pile if
they
> had left when lined.
> Another time while working 2nd trick East End I had the retarder operator
call
> for the lead as the bowl was rolling out at Cicero. The cars rolled out
the bowl
> and down the lead to the dirt pile(the big pile of dirt at the end of
track at
> LaVergne) over the pile and across Ridgeland Ave and into the wood depot
which
> use to stand at LaVergne. Next day on the way to work there was still a
CHEX
> (Ralston Pureina)box with its nice checkerboard square hearld sitting on
top of
> the dirt pile.
> Or the time the East End Tower called for three signals on four and three
more
> right behind them as the bowl rolled out the east end of the yard with a
switch
> engine chasing it.
> Steve Holding
> 2nd trick Union Ave Dispatcher
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