Mt. St. Helens under threat of eruption, could affect AMTRAK

In emergency situations, Amtrak can service trains at locations other than route terminals. I think the Empire Builder has been turned in Spokane before, but that usually happens when some serious service disruption causes the train to run many hours late westbound, or when the line is blocked further due to a derailment or something like that.

efin98 wrote:To bring this to the realm of Amtrak, depending on the wind direction how affected with Amtrak be? Does Amtrak have the ability to end service at Spokane should Portland and or Seatle end up down wind of the ash? Would Amtrak be allowed to store trains for the night or a few days east of the eruption should one or both of the Empire Builder sections have to end at Spokane?

Not much storage room at the Spokane Intermodal Center(The remodeled Northern Pacific Depot). I have seen a P42 layover there, but that is about it. They are literally stopping the train on the Viaduct. It would be nice to dig a freight bypass tunnel through the South Hill, but it is expensive, the Voters and the Locals would never go for it, and there is earthquake activity in the Spokane Area.(Happened about 1 or 2 years ago.

With a freight Bypass, the old line can be used for more Passenger Trains through town.

Is there a BNSF yard nearby or within a reasonable distance where the train could be stored overnight since there isn't a place to service the trains?

efin98 wrote:Is there a BNSF yard nearby or within a reasonable distance where the train could be stored overnight since there isn't a place to service the trains?

I assume that either the BNSF or Union Pacific have a yard in Spokane. I remember seeing a Union Pacific Yard when I was taking one of my journeys exploring Spokane on a STA Bus.

Yes to answer Mr. Madison's Question 7 has been Terminated in SPK before also I heard it could blow as early as Tonight.

AmtrakFan

A bit of history on what is possibly the worlds worst rail disaster caused by a volcano

http://danger-ahead.railfan.net/acciden ... /home.html

How far is the Seattle train Station from Mt. St. Helens?

Also, I noticed that they are evacuating a 9-mile radius of the area, and I also wonder if any Amtrak ROW's are located in that 9-mile radius circle.

Seattle is about one hundred miles from Mt. St. Helens. I would guess that the BNSF line between Seattle and Portland is about 50 miles west of St. Helens at it's closest point.

the mountain erupted again today, bigger than the last one. still only ahs and steam were released into the air

Seattle is about one hundred miles from Mt. St. Helens. I would guess that the BNSF line between Seattle and Portland is about 50 miles west of St. Helens at it's closest point.

Ok, thanks, so it should be on the safe zone of the volcano then, that's good, although ashes can spread out up to 250 miles from the site, very similar to a nuclear plant meltdown. Hopefully the ash won't accumulate into the trackage that Amtrak or freight uses for its runs.

Regarding Mr. Paniagua's posting, it all depends on where the wind is blowing, and how much ash is generated by any eruption. The last eruption in 1986 hardly gave out anything. The 1980 eruption was a huge mess in eastern Washington, but just a light dusting in Seattle. I don't remember what happened in Portland.

Looks like she is quieting down for a while, no impact on Amtrak service. Except maybe more riders on Amtrak Cascades and the Coast Starlight trying to get a good view of the mountain.