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CSX is on the ground East of Nappanee between CR 15 and CR 17. Sounds like 15-20 cars stacked up. Crew was alert and talking with the dispatcher prior to being extricated, but they were transported to the hospital from the scene.

any trains detouring through Michigan?

Thanks.

30 car stack train from Pennsylvania to Bedford Park. Crew transported after extrication as Mike reported. Cars reportedly ended up on top of engines? Looks like clean up underway during the night. Can't tell if RJCorman or Hulcher?

http://www.wndu.com/content/news/Two-in ... 00201.html

"The train departed from the tracks, splitting it's engine. Two crew members on board were injured. Both were taken to Goshen Hospital with minor injuries.
Officials with the train company, CSX, tell us the train was carrying 30 loads of intermodal containers from Chambersburg, Pennsylvania to Bedford Park, Illinois."

most freights are being tied down on the main.

The derailed train was Q015-02 with 496 and 7761

Q002 Q003 Q010 & Q020 have already been rerouted via NS.

Other CSX trains like K628 (Jacksonville, FL-Blue Island, IL) have been sidelined onto other CSX lines. It was routed straight up the Toledo Subdivion into Tontogany, OH. They'll probably keep it it there for a day before routing it back South and West

Some real craziness is going on!

Corman and Crane Masters are both out. Also Beer & Slabaugh, a local construction company about a mile away was apparently called for extra equipment

Toppysager wrote:Some real craziness is going on!

Precision railroading?

The county reposted some daytime shots of the pile on Facebook earlier today. It is a mess. But CSX has professional help.

justalurker66 wrote:

Toppysager wrote:Some real craziness is going on!

Precision railroading?

The county reposted some daytime shots of the pile on Facebook earlier today. It is a mess. But CSX has professional help.

Indeed, but NS would have virtually no conceivable need to ever run CSX rails if the situation were reversed given it's access to Chicago via three different mains

Looking on the map, it looks like it happened by Gravelton.
Fortunately they weren't carrying hazardous cargo, and if you click on the link posted earlier, it says the engineer and conductor were released from the hospital.

This could have been much worse.

As of this post, no official cause has been determined, but based on the amount of rain that had fallen last night, the derailment could very well have been weather-related. I have an Indiana Gazetteer, and it shows a small ditch near where the derailment occurred. Perhaps (this is speculation) there was a washout there.
Besides the derailment, the other news story in the Michiana Region was storm damage in Elkhart Co., as high winds had toppled trees in N IN yesterday evening, and the area was under a flash flood watch.
Is it also possible that straight-line winds tipped over the train, which was a double-stack? There were no tornadoes reported in Northern Indiana, even though LaPorte Co. sounded their sirens. (The derailment occurred several counties east of LaPorte Co....near where CSX crosses the Elkhart/Kosciusko county line.)
I also wonder when the strong winds blew threw, and when the derailment happened. It was about 7pm when a strong wind gust blew threw the Benton Harbor area.

The wind would be my first suspect ... however it could have been a track defect. Note how the engines are in the ditch with a string of mostly empty cars off to the side then a pile of containers at the back of the empties. Then there is a string of cars with containers still on them between the two mains and another pile of cars and containers (with one car and container off the rails to the opposite side of the engine). Either some force took the train off the rails or the rails failed under the train.

Or perhaps the passerby on the news was correct and the "rails got loose".

No tornadoes reported ... but a 70 MPH wind gust isn't easy to fight.

Toppysager wrote: but NS would have virtually no conceivable need to ever run CSX rails if the situation were reversed given it's access to Chicago via three different mains

And yet they often do....

Typhoon wrote:

Toppysager wrote: but NS would have virtually no conceivable need to ever run CSX rails if the situation were reversed given it's access to Chicago via three different mains

And yet they often do....

Seen it happen. Many times.

JoJames wrote:

Typhoon wrote:

Toppysager wrote: but NS would have virtually no conceivable need to ever run CSX rails if the situation were reversed given it's access to Chicago via three different mains

And yet they often do....

Seen it happen. Many times.

NS has 3 routes into Chicago from NW Ohio, if it uses CSX, it is by choice and not necessity. It's been a long time since CSX last hosted NS traffic on the B&O.

If the wreck was caused by wind, the engines would not be part of the pile, since wind can tip light containers but hardly a 200-tin piece of equipment.

MQT3001 wrote:If the wreck was caused by wind, the engines would not be part of the pile, since wind can tip light containers but hardly a 200-tin piece of equipment.

It is a strange accident. I can see where there would be enough force to pull the engines over with the cars.

Toppysager wrote:
NS has 3 routes into Chicago from NW Ohio, if it uses CSX, it is by choice and not necessity. It's been a long time since CSX last hosted NS traffic on the B&O.

Wrong, but cool story anyways.

GP30M4216 wrote:http://www.elkharttruth.com/news/weathe ... 28694.html

“CSX has begun clearing debris and railcars from the site in Nappanee where a westbound train derailed overnight during severe weather, CSX said in an updated statement provided Thursday afternoon. “We’ve determined a total of two locomotives and eight railcars carrying 32 intermodal containers derailed. No hazardous materials were involved in this incident.”

The pictures seem to show more than eight cars off of the rails. I assume they are counting multiple well cars as one car?

justalurker66 wrote:

GP30M4216 wrote:http://www.elkharttruth.com/news/weathe ... 28694.html

“CSX has begun clearing debris and railcars from the site in Nappanee where a westbound train derailed overnight during severe weather, CSX said in an updated statement provided Thursday afternoon. “We’ve determined a total of two locomotives and eight railcars carrying 32 intermodal containers derailed. No hazardous materials were involved in this incident.”

The pictures seem to show more than eight cars off of the rails. I assume they are counting multiple well cars as one car?

Sure sounds like they were going by car number indeed. Good way to cheat when talking to the media haha.