Freight Yard Disaster

I get a call Friday asking if I could come in Saturday to cover for another volunteer that can’t make it in. Normally, I volunteer at the Twin City Model Railroad Museum on Tuesdays, but I didn’t have any plans for Saturday so I said yes.

Coming in on a Saturday would give me a chance to work with some folks I normally don’t get to work with, so I figured it would be a good opportunity to learn something new. I did learn some new stuff but I also re-learned something I already knew; or so I thought.

It was time to pull one of the freight trains off the main line into the Midland Yard and send out something else for awhile.

There was a young boy watching me work the control panel, and, since I like to engage the public whenever I can, I asked him which train I should sent out next.

He picked the “Yellowstone” engine shown in the picture at right, a massive 2-8-8-4 steam locomotive.

I brought the other train in from the main line and sent out the Yellowstone. While the train was pulling out onto the main line I was distracted by a commotion on the other side of the layout. After I returned to the yard control panel I started moving some of the rolling stock around to set up another freight train to run next.

I was pretty intent on what I was doing in the yard and didn’t notice the small crowd of about a dozen visitors lining up to watch the yard action. As I was happily moving an engine around the yard I heard someone say, “Hey, I think that train is going to . . .” and then CRASH! The train with the huge engine I had sent out a few minutes earlier came crashing into the yard at nearly full speed, rear-ending another train!

I had forgotten to reset the switch that leads from the main line into the yard. Instead of continuing on the main line, the train followed the track back into the yard. Three sidings full of trains were now scattered all over the yard, and in front of an audience of about a dozen people! It would have been embarrassing without the audience, but I wanted to crawl under a rock!

One of the other volunteers helped me clean up my mess and got the train back on the main line. Fortunately, none of the trains were damaged. As we were cleaning up the mess, I ran through my head what had happened to lead up to the crash. In the same way that I was modeling freight yard operations, I had inadvertently modeled a railroad disaster. I had allowed something to distract me from following the procedures that would have prevented the crash.

Fortunately, I don’t have to deal with an NTSB accident investigation and, other than my bruised ego, no one was hurt. I will no doubt, have to endure a little more ribbing from my fellow volunteers at the museum.

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