Milw Rd St.Croix Tower,MN.
St,Croix Tower,Hastings MN.Circa 1973.End of Joint Milw.CB&Q operation. Looking west toward St.Paul. Milw Straight ahead,Q trails off to right to Prescott,WI. For rules fans, 20 miles dual owner ship, double track ABS Rule 251 keep LEFT. The green searchlight is Q, Milw semaphores. Trivia: This is where the tower and my RR career were almost snuffed out on a Thangsgiving night 1975 in a spectacular wreck. Milw 66 rounded the curve up there with a car dragging. Part way down the steps for insp, sparks were seen. The car hit that Q turnout taking out everything you see,stopping where that opr is standing. Track,diamond,poles,wires,and buildings. The 50 ton loaded boxcar snagged this first turnout,pulling it 10ft in the air.This saved my bacon. Not intending to run out towards it,headed back up to radio and wait impending doom. Don't know what I was going to tell him,"stop this now?" As the caboose could now see, the radio crackled "OMG we're into the F------- tower! Then dead silence.5 cars&hack left on track. Lantern's bobbing up track,we all looked at each other in awe.Back to work,radio to St.Paul YdMstr,hold all trns,call Newport,LaCrosse and Cicero dispatchers, we are blocked. Supt took 2 hrs from Lacrosse,took one look,looked at yours truly,and said,"Andy ,you must live clean." After a couple days,trains could get by. But it gets better and you just can't make this stuff up. The very next Thursday night,Milw 76 comes around bend,more sparks,hit Q turnout,exact same scenario. Everthing tore out again,except this time it uncoupled with the last moving car,a hopper dragging it's trailing truck,hits the trailing point "savior" turnout and like a Lionel trainset, re-rails itself! Blocked again. The suggestion from the Chief DS was,this may be a bad omen and I should possibly lay off sick next Thursday. I declined. An opr should go down with his tower. Anyway something to be thankful for. And now you know....the rest of the story...Good Day.
Milw Rd St.Croix Tower,MN.
St,Croix Tower,Hastings MN.Circa 1973.End of Joint Milw.CB&Q operation. Looking west toward St.Paul. Milw Straight ahead,Q trails off to right to Prescott,WI. For rules fans, 20 miles dual owner ship, double track ABS Rule 251 keep LEFT. The green searchlight is Q, Milw semaphores. Trivia: This is where the tower and my RR career were almost snuffed out on a Thangsgiving night 1975 in a spectacular wreck. Milw 66 rounded the curve up there with a car dragging. Part way down the steps for insp, sparks were seen. The car hit that Q turnout taking out everything you see,stopping where that opr is standing. Track,diamond,poles,wires,and buildings. The 50 ton loaded boxcar snagged this first turnout,pulling it 10ft in the air.This saved my bacon. Not intending to run out towards it,headed back up to radio and wait impending doom. Don't know what I was going to tell him,"stop this now?" As the caboose could now see, the radio crackled "OMG we're into the F------- tower! Then dead silence.5 cars&hack left on track. Lantern's bobbing up track,we all looked at each other in awe.Back to work,radio to St.Paul YdMstr,hold all trns,call Newport,LaCrosse and Cicero dispatchers, we are blocked. Supt took 2 hrs from Lacrosse,took one look,looked at yours truly,and said,"Andy ,you must live clean." After a couple days,trains could get by. But it gets better and you just can't make this stuff up. The very next Thursday night,Milw 76 comes around bend,more sparks,hit Q turnout,exact same scenario. Everthing tore out again,except this time it uncoupled with the last moving car,a hopper dragging it's trailing truck,hits the trailing point "savior" turnout and like a Lionel trainset, re-rails itself! Blocked again. The suggestion from the Chief DS was,this may be a bad omen and I should possibly lay off sick next Thursday. I declined. An opr should go down with his tower. Anyway something to be thankful for. And now you know....the rest of the story...Good Day.