• Tunnel collapse on the Cincinnati-Louisville Main

  • Discussion of the operations of CSX Transportation, from 1980 to the present. Official site can be found here: CSXT.COM.
Discussion of the operations of CSX Transportation, from 1980 to the present. Official site can be found here: CSXT.COM.

Moderator: MBTA F40PH-2C 1050

  by catfoodflambe
 
The ex L&N main between Cincinnati and Louisville is closed due to the collapse of about 100 feet of the north (Cincinnati) end of Eagle Tunnel, near Glencoe, KY. I believe this is around MP 71, about three quarters of the way from Louisville to Cincy.

Unfortunately, CSX found about the collapse by running Q231 into it, derailing about 8 loaded autoracks in the process about 3:00 AM Wednesday morning. The crew suffered minor injuries.

CSX expects the line will be closed for 2-3 weeks, and plans to daylight the collapsed section of the tunnel. The site is somewhat remote, and contractor crews are having a difficult time accessing the site. Five to six inches of rain fell this week and melted more that a foot of snow in the process - the same saturated ground conditions that caused the problem is making it tough to get the heavy equipment where it needs to be. I understand they had to cut a roadway back to the area, and will have to clear large trees from the area in order to make room to work.

Detours - for traffic that must move from Cincy or Louisville, trains are being routed north, then east over the ex= PRR/PC/CR/Now Louisville and Indiana line to Seymour, IN, then east over the ex B&O Cincy- St. Louis main. Trains are also being moved east over the former CSX Louisville-Winchester KY, line (now operated by R J Corman), then north over the Corbin Division. On a larger scale, overhead traffic will move West from Cleveland, Columbus, and Detroit over the Cleveland-St Louis line to Terre Haute, then south via Evansville to Nashville. Expect LOTS of other extra moves over the lines in the area before this is over.