We've Got The County Covered
We've Got The County Covered
Truckers were busy last week hauling damaged rail cargo containers to be cut up for scrap. These loaded trucks, stopped at the Town Pump in Chinook, were eastbound for Great Falls. About 160 of the containers, which were empty, were blown off the tracks during a severe wind event that occurred east of Malta last weekend.
Saturday evening, June 28, estimated "75 to 100 mph winds" wreaked havoc with an eastbound freight train near the Bowdoin area, between Malta and Saco. Even though the train was stopped as a safety precaution, the winds overturned a number of railroad cars carrying intermodal cargo containers. About 160 of the cargo units were thrown near the tracks during the storm. After work by an outside derailment service and BNSF employees, traffic was restored around 2 pm on the Sunday after the windstorm.
Ross Lane, the Burlington Northern Santa Fe's Portland-based Director of Public Affairs, reported the train was carrying mostly empty containers. Lane said as part of the rail company's safety procedures, the train was stopped when there were high winds in the forecast. A local resident reported to "MTN News," "The conductor said it all happened in a minute and a half." The train was not carrying any hazardous materials and there were no injuries reported. A retired-BSNF conductor on freight trains that regularly passed through the area said, "Bowdoin is an area that always had variable and strong winds, not just some trips, but on most every trip."
Blaine County residents may have seen several semi-trucks carrying single damaged cargo units headed east on Highway 2. Two drivers, stopped at the Town Pump in Chinook, stated, "We are hauling them to Great Falls where they'll be cut up for scrap." Asked how many cargo units were being loaded and removed, they said, "We've heard estimates from 100 to 500, pick a number."
The "Phillips County News" reported in last Wednesday's edition that were "at least 160 of the trailers near the train tracks after the wind swept the area." Work continued on removing the damaged cargo units even though the mainline was reopened to rail traffic on the afternoon following the wind event.
Parts of Blaine County experienced some severe weather on the same Saturday afternoon. Random reports suggest the wind was less intense in our area and the brunt of the storm was felt further east.
