Snow Blasts Parked Freight Cars
Snowplowing with a little help from your friends!
These Carmen are parked at a crossing in Goodland, Kansas communicating to the engineer as the train approaches. About 1:16 into the clip, you can hear Carmen tell the engineer to maintain speed as they guide him forward telling him not to worry about the parked freight cars he is about to pass.
BOOM! The snow explodes between the snowplow and the freight cars with nowhere else to go except straight up into the air!
Next, there is a second set of parked freight cars on the other side of the crossing that provide the same explosive results.
The Kyle Railroad uses pushplows which are subject to derailments in heavy snow. The sled in front has a high blade with no retractable side hydraulics to help push snow away from the tracks.
Three results are common with push plows!
- The plow pushes the snow aside.
- The plow starts to lift up and derail
- The plow absolutely derails, possible taking the engine with it!
This particular snow plow is being pushed by 2 Southern Pacific locomotives and is used to clear the tracks for the Kyle Railroad that runs from Northeastern Kansas into Eastern Colorado. The Kyle Railroad handles mostly agricultural and construction products.
If you have ever participated in snow removal for the railroads, we would love to hear about your experience!
