STRASBURG, Pa. — The day after Norfolk & Western 475 collided with an excavator — in an coincidence that turned into streamed stay through a webcam and quickly unfold throughout the net — the Strasburg Rail street started making repairs to the damaged locomotive.
On Thursday, save crews on the Strasburg were making repairs to the smokebox and headlight, each of which have been closely damaged within the incident. Officials tell Railfan & Railroad that they anticipate upkeep to development fast, however that they’re not totally sure while the locomotive will go back to provider. In the meantime, the Federal Railroad administration has opened an investigation into the incident.
A screenshot of the digital Railfan webcam at Paradise, Pa., moments earlier than Norfolk & Western 4-eight-zero 475 collided with an excavator.
On Wednesday morning, locomotive 475 changed into going for walks round its teach at Paradise, Pa., in which the Strasburg’s excursions flip returned to their namesake. Because the locomotive handed the train on the opposite tune, the group become waving to passengers and reputedly did no longer see that the switch in the front of them changed into misaligned. The locomotive went via a misaligned switch and right into an maintenance of manner excavator. The bucket of the excavator punched a hollow through the locomotive’s smokebox. The railroad quick dispatched every other locomotive to bring the passengers lower back to Strasburg and 475 was later dragged returned to the store.
The whole incident changed into broadcast live by way of virtual Railfan, which has a digital camera at Paradise. That clip plus a video taken by way of a passenger unfold throughout the net like wildfire on Wednesday afternoon.
No person became injured for the duration of the collision, however Strasburg tells Railfan & Railroad that they’re the use of the incident to look at its very own training practices to ensure some thing like this does not take place again.
“protection is at the vanguard of everything at Strasburg Rail avenue. On any given day we’ve as many as seventy five personnel running in our operation and several thousand guests journey our trains and depend upon our commitment to protection. We’re cooperating with FRA as they check out and will observe their necessities and pointers,” the railroad informed Railfan & Railroad. “additionally, we’re the usage of this opportunity to carry out root reason evaluation and become aware of schooling gaps, operational monitoring practices, or other elements which can have contributed to this coincidence. We remain proud of our devoted, professional staff who care deeply for the people who paintings on and ride our trains every day.”
