Pete,
While working third trick at Monmouth I was watching a Westbound train which was about two thirds by when a tank car passed with a flaming hot box, that got my attention. The rear end went by and I gave them the hotbox signal and then went in and radioed the train. The car was set out on the center siding. I was told later the journal was getting close to going. A week or so went by and I received a nice letter from I.W. Christ, Superintendent which I still have somewhere.
After returning from the service in 67, I went back to third trick at Monmouth. The old M&St L then C&NW yard was visible out the waiting room windows. The old turntable was being removed and apparently one of the cutting torches caught the wood pit on fire. It smoldered during the night and in addition to smelling covered every thing with ash.
Not a smelly story but another one. I worked Fairfield third trick an awful lot as the regular operator was also an extra dispatcher. Ottumwa would call when East bound trains departed, I would call the RI tower operator and let him know. This one night I called the tower and told him number ? was out and then apparently I laid my head on the desk and fell asleep. It turned out the RI operator did the same. The fireman had to walk to the tower and wake him.
Steve, in SC did you know Jack Brain?
I think I have told this story on another list, again this happened in Monmouth. I wasn't working when this happened. C&NW civil engineers were measuring near the diamond with a steel tape, it happened No.17 was coming when one of the engineers pulled the tape across the diamond setting the high green to red in the engineers face. You could hear the train going into emergency, needless to say it didn't get stopped before it got to the diamond. The signal was a block and a half East of the diamond and the speed limit was 40 mph.
Lenny Ohrnell
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