It was not pleasant to see the front-page photo in the Washington Post today showing an Interstate overpass sticking out of a chocolate brown lake, and then find that it's in Chehalis, Washington and Interstate 5 under up to ten feet of water. Do an internet search, and you'll find scores of reports, with Chehalis apparent "ground zero".

Is a certain 2-8-2 of our acquaintance under water? Is there any report on how the Chehalis-Centralia RR Assn. railroad is faring? Looking at my railroad maps, it looks very bad indeed.

I called a co-worker who lives nearby, he says all the tracks are either under water or have been. The shop got swamped from what he could see (with binos, couldn't get very close) and that the he'd heard the engine got water over the tops of the wheels and to the bottom of the boiler.
But some of that is third-hand, I can't promise that is accurate.

I haven't been on the ground for an inspection yet, since I'm a good 90 miles away, and this is finals week. I have, however, been keeping up a constant stream of email updates with other museum volunteers and staff about the status of the railroad.

The barn in which the 15 and other equipment is stored shows a water mark of about one foot. While no permanent conclusions cannot be drawn yet, it does NOT look like the water reached the boiler, much less the bearings on the main drivers. Further, the barn has an interior grade, making the back deeper than the front, and the water mark was measured at the back. It's possible that not even the pony truck was inundated.

The only other damage of note at this time is minor to the walkway that goes up to the depot deck.

Naturally the situation may change, but its safe to say that the 15 has survived to fight another day.

The railroad is a different matter. I'm not at liberty to discuss too much in detail. I can say that there are washouts, and there is damage. Probably after the waters recede, the places dries a bit, and the brass hats get to inspect, we'll have more to say about the condition of the line and plans for the season. Right now, though, there is absolutely no way to know how bad it is or is not.

Right now I think we're all just happy the 15 didn't turn into the U-15, or the HMS Borovec. And until we know more about the line, that's enough.

What is of more concern may be our members. Many of them live in Lewis County and many have had their homes effected by flooding. If anything or anyone needs good thoughts and prayers, that does. The museum is only as strong as its people, and they are who really need help right now. Without them, the museum is nothing.

This morning, I did a quick inspection of most of the line. I was suprised in a good way at what I could see. While I did see a lot of debris across the tracks (mostly between the station and dowtown Chehalis), I could find very little, if any, immediate damage to the line or it's equipment. Other than a lot of mud and some minor damage to the ramp to the station, it would have been tough to see that the line was laregly under water for several days. Mind you, I hardly ran the line itself and didn't get out of my SUV to look at every inch of the line, but I didn't see anything that would make a person shake his head and mutter bad things.
As AC said, it appears that if the water got into the shop, it didn't get much in there.

Boy is that good news. I watched a "Storm Special Report" on King 5 last night, and it seemed like every time they came close to showing the yard and shop they stopped short....thanks for the update.

Dave

I've been authorized to make an official statement on behalf of the museum in a few days. Slightly more details will be available then.

I *can* say, however, that the line which the museum operates on *has* taken damage. Any verdict made as of today would be premature speculation.

I'm looking forward to that report. I know the Tacoma Rail Tracks have some damages, but have heard nothing on the condition of the tracks for this steam operation. Clearly there is work to do before May rolls around, but from what little I could see, it's not an issue of giving up. To me, that's the best news of all.

AC, are you a lawyer? You have a way of making statements in lawyerese. I've never heard the phrase "slightly more details" before.

No. I'm just being careful not to make statements that I'm not authorized to make.

Chehalis Centralia Railroad & Museum Endures Flooding, Assesses Damages

CHEHALIS, Wa., Dec 13 / -- The Chehalis Centralia Railroad & Museum has endured severe flooding that struck the Pacific Northwest over the first weekend of December. Much of the Lewis County region was flooded, including the rail line that the railroad operates on, as well as the railroad's museum complex. CCR&M management are still taking stock of the damages as the water recedes.

As the waters receded over the last week, CCR&M members have conducted a preliminary inspection of the museum and the Port of Chehalis rail line over which the railroad operates excursion trains. Some of the damage observed includes:

Multiple track washouts. Many sections of track have shifted off their ballast roadbed. In some cases, the roadbed has washed away entirely, and stretches of track are hanging in the air.

Missing & dislodged materials. Due to the washouts, the railroad has lost a small number of ties. Crossbucks and other signs appear to be uprooted and possibly missing in some locations. On the museum grounds, a few smaller pieces of the depot deck are missing. Smaller materials, tools, and supplies may be dislodged or missing due to floating away in the flood waters.

Debris. Some stretches of track are buried under debris, such as fallen trees, branches, and earth.

Bridges. The railroad is still planning a comprehensive inspection of the line's bridges. The two largest bridges -- one over the Newaukum River and the other over the West Fork Chehalis River -- are still standing and initially appear intact. Further detail on bridges may be available at a later date.

Fortunately, the CCR&M's collection of railroad equipment was not seriously damaged. The Cowlitz, Chehalis & Cascade No. 15 -- a Baldwin "Mikado" type steam locomotive built in 1916 -- was unaffected by the flood, as the carbarn in which it is stored saw barely twelve inches of water at the back (deep) end.

The CCR&M is committed to repairing the line. At this point in time, the railroad is operating under the assumption that the line will be returned to service in time to operate its normal summer schedule of excursions in 2008. Railroad management is working actively with officials from the Port of Chehalis to inventory damages and to assess repair strategies for the line.


ABOUT THE CCR&M

The Chehalis Centralia Railroad & Museum is a railroad museum and heritage railway founded in 1986. Located in the city of Chehalis, Washington, the Museum focuses on preserving the railroad heritage of Lewis County and the surrounding Southwest Washington region. The most famous holding of the Museum's collection the Chehalis, Cowlitz & Cascade No. 15, a Baldwin "Mikado" type steam locomotive built in 1916.

In addition to preservation, the Museum operates passenger excursions and dinner trains over nearly ten miles of track belonging to the Port of Chehalis. This historic line is a remnant of the former Milwaukee Road branch line to South Bend and the Pacific Coast, and winds through scenic hills, farmland, and over several wooden trestles.


PHOTOS:

IMG: http://www.steamtrainride.com/photos/po ... 00.web.jpg
Caption: Many sections of the Port of Chehalis rail line, over which the CCR&M operates regular summer excursion trains, have shifted due to flood waters.
Location: Near Highway 603, outside of Chehalis, Washington.
Photo: Port of Chehalis. A higher resolution photo is available to media upon request.

IMG: http://www.steamtrainride.com/photos/po ... 34.web.jpg
Caption: Ray Beaber, locomotive engineer on the CCR&M, inspects flood damage on the Port of Chehalis rail line.
Location: Near Twin Oaks Road, west of Chehalis, Washington.
Photo: Port of Chehalis. A higher resolution photo is available to media upon request.

IMG: http://www.steamtrainride.com/photos/po ... 74.web.jpg
Caption: This track wash out is typical of the damage to the Port of Chehalis rail line, over which the CCR&M operates regular summer excursion trains.
Location: Near Twin Oaks Road, east of Adna, Washington.
Photo: Port of Chehalis. A higher resolution photo is available to media upon request.


CONTACT:
General inquiries to Chehalis Centralia Railroad & Museum: (360) 748-9593
Media inquiries to Alexander Craghead, CCR&M: (503) 347-4059 / alexander.craghead@gmail.com


Chehalis Centralia Railroad & Museum

Depot
1101 Sylvenus Street
Chehalis, WA 98532

Office
1945 S. Market Blvd.
Chehalis, WA 98532

http://www.steamtrainride.com/

Good God. I didn't see anything like on my drive along the line. Of course, the road doesn't parallel every foot of track.
My prayer is for a speedy rebuild and a return to service this coming year.