| By: | Philip M. Goldstein |
| Dates: | 9/24/2010 - 9/24/2010 |
| Album Info: | CSX #5226 [ES40DC]
According to Conductor Bo Hunt; this locomotive was brought up from New Jersey to assist in crippled Q161's journey north to Selkirk Yard. Apparently, the light engine had to come from New Jersey, as Newburgh, Kingston, nor Selkirk had any available power to spare.
From what I was told, one of two units originally assigned to Q161 "dropped out" late in the morning on the main. The crew was able to limp the train along the main to CP 80 where it would be tied down until assistance can arrive.
This left all traffic to shunt around Q161 via the West Park Siding, which fortunately had been recently constructed (ca. 2006/2007), as a "supersiding" with high speed turnouts.
So in essence, with Q161 blocking the main, the siding became the temporary main...
When fellow railfan Phil Peters and myself (two Phil's!) arrived at CP 80, around 12:10 p.m.; the CSX jitney had just picked up the Q161 crew.
#5226 would not arrive until 3:55 pm, when it would come in on the West Park siding, stop a very short distance north of me. Conductor Bo Hunt, after adjusting a brake line, came over to shoot the breeze with me, while the engineer called the NJ (now NI) dispatcher to throw the turnout at CP80, and give him permission to enter an occupied block, and thereby allowing #5226 to back down on the dead train. |
