Thanks Mike. This is exactly the information I was looking for. It proves once again that pictures do lie. The area betwen the tracks covered with stone looked pretty solid in the photo. Obviously that was not the case. It is also nice to have a local crane so close to home. It seems like every time I need one they are at least 3 hours away. I am glad the crane people came with the right equipment and did the job right.

Derailments like these are fairly routine on the railroad and certainly nothing to get to excited about so long as everyone is safe. As you can probably tell I have some interest in how these situations are handled, at least as long as it is not my railroad. It never hurts to learn how others handle situations you are likely to find yourself in again. The hair on my head is not the only thing above my shoulders that is grey these days.

Thanks agin Mike.

John Bohon

I asked the same question on Sunday. Turns out, they broke up the set, and ran each E on the turntable to the other side, "track 12" we call it, of the turntable. They were then re-joined. With no trolley running, they could run in a zig zag movement through the yard to the south end of the boarding platform (where the trolley usually boards). This is also where the Steamtown trains boarded, 1995-2000. A rarely used track (Hennigan's Junction?) leads from here to the Steamtown runner. From that point, they rejoined the Amtrak unit and the rest of the train. This may have meant shoving the train to clear a switch by S. Washington Ave. This places the train on the Mall siding, which is the furthest-North track in the yard. It is also connected directly to the North leg of the Bridge 60 wye, parallel to the derailed train. This allowed direct access to the CP Rail main on the west side of the bridge.

From what I've heard, even the Pennsy special had a few slips that morning trying to leave town. Railroading in NE Pennsylvania is always a challenge.

I hope that isn't too much detail for such a simple question.