Not Quite In The Nick of Time
Slightly out of my coverage area, but interesting nonetheless, is this video showing a mudslide derailing a passing BNSF intermodal train.
It occurred yesterday, 12/17/2012, at Everett, WA when a 75 foot-wide wall of mud slid from the top of a 100 foot-tall hill, striking and derailing, a 66-car Chicago to Seattle intermodal.
Per BNSF spokesperson Gus Melonas, geotechnical engineers were set to inspect the super-saturated hill as soon as the train passed by the location. Alas, not quite in the nick of time…
Talk about someone being in the right place at the right time.. Not often railfans or casual observers catch something like this, which will likely disrupt rail trafic in the Northwest for at least a week or two.