steve_relei
Lead Service Attendant
- Joined
- Feb 6, 2003
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17-year-old killed in crash near Woodland
Tuesday, September 9, 2003
By JOHN BRANTON, Columbian staff writer
A 17-year-old boy was killed near Woodland on Monday when his speeding car snapped a power pole on Interstate 5, draping transmission lines across the three northbound lanes and a moving Amtrak locomotive.
Michael Joseph Huske of Kelso died in the crash on his birthday, said Cowlitz County Coroner Mike Nichols.
The smashup about two miles north of Woodland's Dike Access Road blocked freeway and rail traffic for a couple of hours and left about 2,100 Woodland residents without power. Power was restored for most customers after about 30 minutes.
Officials said no one on the train was hurt. The seven downed power lines, the heaviest carrying 115,000 volts, "did what they were supposed to do and de-energized almost instantaneously," said Dave Andrew, a spokesman for Cowlitz County PUD.
At 1:24 p.m. Monday, according to a Washington State Patrol report, Huske was driving a 1994 Dodge Stealth north at high speed when he lost control on the wet freeway. The Dodge spun, striking a 1993 Jeep driven by Jahir A. Carrizosa, 20, of San Jose, Calif.
Carrizosa, who wore a seat belt, was not injured. Huske also wore a seat belt, the report said.
The Dodge snapped an 80-foot-tall wooden power pole, sending the power lines across the three northbound freeway lanes and the locomotive of the Amtrak. The Amtrak train was northbound from Vancouver to Seattle, said Gus Melonas, a spokesman for Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway.
Railway workers used "cherry picker" machines to remove the power lines tangled on the front of the train. Railway traffic was on the move on the twin lines by 3:35 p.m., Melonas said. About 60 trains a day use the lines.
Meanwhile, in a snarl of no small proportion, workers sorted out the mess on the freeway, getting two of three lanes open by about 2:45 p.m., and all three open by about 4:14 p.m., officials said. Southbound traffic was not heavily affected.
I thought you all would be interested in this. I was. Monday, an Amtrak train was halted by a powerline that fell across the tracks between Vancouver and Kelso. It is a section of track that travels down the middle of the freeway--with each direction on opposite sides of the tracks. The train would have been traveling at about 79 mph and had to make a quick stop. Apparently this was done without upsetting the train. The dummy locomotive (the powered loco was at the rear, pushing the train) was the front of the train. TV photos show live powerlines touching the nose of the ex-FP40. This could create a danger as the locomotive and the rest of the train are made of metal and had the capacity to "shock" people. But, no one on board was hurt. The train was halted for about 2 hours; highway traffic was backed up for moare than 8 miles. Like I said, this is an interesting story, and many things went through my head about it.
( Another indication of how well I know this route.)
Tuesday, September 9, 2003
By JOHN BRANTON, Columbian staff writer
A 17-year-old boy was killed near Woodland on Monday when his speeding car snapped a power pole on Interstate 5, draping transmission lines across the three northbound lanes and a moving Amtrak locomotive.
Michael Joseph Huske of Kelso died in the crash on his birthday, said Cowlitz County Coroner Mike Nichols.
The smashup about two miles north of Woodland's Dike Access Road blocked freeway and rail traffic for a couple of hours and left about 2,100 Woodland residents without power. Power was restored for most customers after about 30 minutes.
Officials said no one on the train was hurt. The seven downed power lines, the heaviest carrying 115,000 volts, "did what they were supposed to do and de-energized almost instantaneously," said Dave Andrew, a spokesman for Cowlitz County PUD.
At 1:24 p.m. Monday, according to a Washington State Patrol report, Huske was driving a 1994 Dodge Stealth north at high speed when he lost control on the wet freeway. The Dodge spun, striking a 1993 Jeep driven by Jahir A. Carrizosa, 20, of San Jose, Calif.
Carrizosa, who wore a seat belt, was not injured. Huske also wore a seat belt, the report said.
The Dodge snapped an 80-foot-tall wooden power pole, sending the power lines across the three northbound freeway lanes and the locomotive of the Amtrak. The Amtrak train was northbound from Vancouver to Seattle, said Gus Melonas, a spokesman for Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway.
Railway workers used "cherry picker" machines to remove the power lines tangled on the front of the train. Railway traffic was on the move on the twin lines by 3:35 p.m., Melonas said. About 60 trains a day use the lines.
Meanwhile, in a snarl of no small proportion, workers sorted out the mess on the freeway, getting two of three lanes open by about 2:45 p.m., and all three open by about 4:14 p.m., officials said. Southbound traffic was not heavily affected.
I thought you all would be interested in this. I was. Monday, an Amtrak train was halted by a powerline that fell across the tracks between Vancouver and Kelso. It is a section of track that travels down the middle of the freeway--with each direction on opposite sides of the tracks. The train would have been traveling at about 79 mph and had to make a quick stop. Apparently this was done without upsetting the train. The dummy locomotive (the powered loco was at the rear, pushing the train) was the front of the train. TV photos show live powerlines touching the nose of the ex-FP40. This could create a danger as the locomotive and the rest of the train are made of metal and had the capacity to "shock" people. But, no one on board was hurt. The train was halted for about 2 hours; highway traffic was backed up for moare than 8 miles. Like I said, this is an interesting story, and many things went through my head about it.
( Another indication of how well I know this route.)
