We have quite a catastrophe taking place here in Tempe. At 6:15 this
morning a UP freight train derailed while crossing a long multi-section bridge
over Town Lake. One of the cars that derailed was carrying flammable material
used in making nylon, but it did not ignite. By the time I found out about
this the entire bridge was on fire with the train stopped.
The bridge is 105 years old. It's a multi-section Warren Truss design.
The crossties and other portions are wood, but the structure itself is heavy
steel. The approach on the south end was a wooden trestle, which burned
completely. That first section of the bridge was turned into a pretzel.
I bailed out of the coffee shop and headed home, where I grabbed a camera
and a bicycle. I got a few shots from the south side just as the police were
pushing people back from the lake and evacuating nearby apartments. I quickly
cycled around to the west and got the opposite side just before the police
closed off the north side path. I stayed there for a couple of hours with a
couple of DPS cops and later a Tempe cop. Got a bunch of photos, and the
scenes were pretty exciting. The middle span was still burning, as was a
60-foot open freight car (wagon) full of lumber. Coupled to it was a pair of
tank cars that I was told were full of gasoline, and their skin temperature was
around 200F. The firefighters on the east side couldn't get water on the west
side, so the fire kept spreading towards the tank cars. A small power boat
with a water canon showed up and the fire was soon under control. For a while
it looked like four firefighters were trying to uncouple the tank cars
from the burning lumber car.
This is no minor bridge. It's the single rail route to the east and south
from Phoenix. It will take at least a year to repair it, provided it can be
repaired. In the meantime, rail traffic will have to be routed through Gila
Bend.
Chris
When the going gets weird, the weird turn pro
- Hunter S. Thompson
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