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MrEd
Conductor
Amtrak spokesman Marc Magliari said there were no injuries to the 287 passengers or crew on the combined No. 448 and No. 48 train, which was delayed around 4 p.m. Sunday. All passengers stayed onboard.
He said a decision on whether to continue the trip by rail or transport the passengers by bus would be made after firefighters finished their work. The cause of the fire wasn't immediately apparent and Amtrak officials were investigating.
He said a decision on whether to continue the trip by rail or transport the passengers by bus would be made after firefighters finished their work. The cause of the fire wasn't immediately apparent and Amtrak officials were investigating.
amtrakwolverine
Engineer
same as above but a working link http://www.chicagobreakingnews.com/2011/01/fire-delays-chicago-to-nyc-amtrak-train.html
Green Maned Lion
Engineer
Isn't that the second LSL fire in recent memory?
Yes....Jinxed route ? At least this one was not in the middle of the night,and they were close enough to Albany/Reesaleer that transfers to other Empire service could cover the whole thing...
C
amtrakwolverine
Engineer
there was the car fire on the LSL coming back from Boston.
OlympianHiawatha
Engineer
I was on that LSL last Sunday sitting in the rear Lounge with scanner when we began dropping HEP and the Conductor was asking Engineer what was going on. Just as soon as they concluded perhaps a loose 480 cable, Engineer comes on saying he has heavy black smoke and fire coming from the #2 unit. We quickly stopped, dropped HEP and waited for the fire department. Having the scanner was priceless as I could keep up on what was going on, and in turn help keep the car attendants updated, along with the more curious pax. We never got too cold, at least in that Lounge or the NYC Sleepers and the batts held up long enough to keep the lights going. And we even got Emergency Snack Packs 
Right now I'm sitting in NYP Club Acela fighting a cantankerous computer and waiting to board the 49 back to CHI. Hopefully no fires this time!
Right now I'm sitting in NYP Club Acela fighting a cantankerous computer and waiting to board the 49 back to CHI. Hopefully no fires this time!
The Davy Crockett
Engineer
I was on that LSL last Sunday sitting in the rear Lounge with scanner when we began dropping HEP and the Conductor was asking Engineer what was going on. Just as soon as they concluded perhaps a loose 480 cable, Engineer comes on saying he has heavy black smoke and fire coming from the #2 unit. We quickly stopped, dropped HEP and waited for the fire department. Having the scanner was priceless as I could keep up on what was going on, and in turn help keep the car attendants updated, along with the more curious pax. We never got too cold, at least in that Lounge or the NYC Sleepers and the batts held up long enough to keep the lights going. And we even got Emergency Snack Packs
Right now I'm sitting in NYP Club Acela fighting a cantankerous computer and waiting to board the 49 back to CHI. Hopefully no fires this time!
Your description of dropping the HEP sounds a lot like what happened to me on The Crescent in September. We had a fire on the #2 unit a few miles past (south of) BHM, with heavy black smoke and a visit from the local FD. Interestingly we had been having the HEP going on and off for several hours beforehand. Seems like a pattern, as I heard one of the crew thinking we had a loose cable...
Hope you have a good trip back to CHI!
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OlympianHiawatha
Engineer
Now that I'm back home and with an uneaten Emergency Snack Pack as a souvenir I am very curious about one exchange between Dispatch and the Engineer/Conductor regarding uncoupling the units and pulling them out of the way. The response was since there was a Buffer (Baggage) Car followed by a Sleeper that was not possible.
Might anyone know why uncoupling would not be possible with this configuration?
I am very curious about one exchange between Dispatch and the Engineer/Conductor regarding uncoupling the units and pulling them out of the way. The response was since there was a Buffer (Baggage) Car followed by a Sleeper that was not possible.Might anyone know why uncoupling would not be possible with this configuration?
Devil's Advocate
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Now the next time HEP keeps dropping I'm going to be wondering if a nice big fire is on the way. That goodness Amtrak isn't flying fiery aircraft. :lol:
OlympianHiawatha
Engineer
During the delay a lady from Australia summed it up perfectly and got many of the more upset pax laughing. She simply stated "at least we weren't over the middle of the ocean when our engine caught fire!"
Devil's Advocate
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Australia you say? That might not be by random happenstance for those who keep up with international news!
jis
Permanent Way Inspector
Staff member
Administator
Moderator
AU Supporting Member
Gathering Team Member
Though that Qantas 380 was not over the middle of an ocean when it happened. It was over Indonesia (Sumatra) and pieces of the engine fell in Batam (I've actually been there in the past). It turned back and landed back in Singapore. It was touch and go for a while since the damage from the uncontained engine failure was more severe than was originally thought to be the case. Fortunately there was an enormous amount of flying experience available in the cockpit between the regular assigned crew and a few highly experienced deadheading pilots.
Devil's Advocate
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Single engine failures are not terribly uncommon or even serious in many cases, but uncontained failures are a lot more rare and quite a bit more serious. Not only is the failed engine out of commission but flying debris from the failure can damage important surfaces and systems including the fuselage, the leading edge, and other engines. At least this wasn't number two on a DC-10.
OlympianHiawatha
Engineer
One of the local photogs posted his pics of the fire and they are quite good.
http://images.nikonians.org/galleries/showgallery.php?cat=17833
http://images.nikonians.org/galleries/showgallery.php?cat=17833
C
Cascadia
Guest
The Davy Crockett
Engineer
There is one Viewliner in the pics. It is the one behind the baggage car, so it is the second car behind the engine that caught fire. You can tell it is a Viewliner because of the upper, narrow set of windows above the standard windows. The narrow windows mean you can be in the upper birth at night and still watch the world roll by. It is pretty sweet to be able to do this. You can't do this from the upper birth in the Superliners, and couldn't from the old Heritgage sleepers either.
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I can't imagine why it would not be possible; it's possible to uncouple at any car or engine in the consist, the only issue might have been that the flames were too close to the attached baggage car. However, since they were talking about cutting between the bag and the Boston sleeper, flames wouldn't have been an issue at all. And from the pictures that I've seen, I don't think that flames would have been an issue even cutting the bag off the engine.Now that I'm back home and with an uneaten Emergency Snack Pack as a souvenir
Might anyone know why uncoupling would not be possible with this configuration?
The fact that they mentioned a buffer almost makes it sound like they didn't feel it necessary to cut off from the occupied cars so as to protect the passengers from danger.
S
Scott Macunga
Guest
A lot of Amtrak P42 fires lately:
Washington DC (AMTK 178), Elyria (112), near Schenectady (70), at Albus, WA (196), at Lake Forest IL (38) and on the Crescent (208) are the ones that fit the pattern.
It is reported that Amtrak knows the problem, and that it relates to defective parts installed when the P42s were overhauled at Beech Grove Shops. What's sad: it is reported that it is known which engines got parts from the defective batch but they're not being called back for rework.
Washington DC (AMTK 178), Elyria (112), near Schenectady (70), at Albus, WA (196), at Lake Forest IL (38) and on the Crescent (208) are the ones that fit the pattern.
It is reported that Amtrak knows the problem, and that it relates to defective parts installed when the P42s were overhauled at Beech Grove Shops. What's sad: it is reported that it is known which engines got parts from the defective batch but they're not being called back for rework.
Devil's Advocate
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If enough of these occur then won't Amtrak eventually start running out of functioning motive power? Also, if they know of the defect and refuse to address it won't that make it harder and harder to collect insurance payouts? Even if the insurance provider is somehow forced to keep paying for these repairs or replacements won't they drastically increase the cost of insurance at the end of the current contract? Seems like a lose-lose proposition to keep ignoring these fires.
Yes.
If indeed it is a defective part, and that's not confirmed at the moment by any official source, it could well be that Amtrak is currently in discussions/battle with the manufacturer of the part to provide replacements and compensation. And if it's a particularly expensive part, Amtrak may not have the budget to outright buy the replacements.
amtrakwolverine
Engineer
leemell
Conductor
I believe that this is the turbine bearing failure that was caused by defective lubrication, the engine had been leaking oil. It turns out that there was a generic defect in these Rolls Royce engines and Quantas grounded all of their A380s for a month or more. Other airlines grounded theirs as well. The fact that it was uncontrained caused great and justifiable alarm in the airline industry. Rolls can up with a fix in a very short time.Australia you say? That might not be by random happenstance for those who keep up with international news!
leemell
Conductor
If the dropping HEP is caused by a loose connector, that is very serious as the 480V high current in these lines will cause arcing at the separation point and generate very high heat (think arc welders).I was on that LSL last Sunday sitting in the rear Lounge with scanner when we began dropping HEP and the Conductor was asking Engineer what was going on. Just as soon as they concluded perhaps a loose 480 cable, Engineer comes on saying he has heavy black smoke and fire coming from the #2 unit. We quickly stopped, dropped HEP and waited for the fire department. Having the scanner was priceless as I could keep up on what was going on, and in turn help keep the car attendants updated, along with the more curious pax. We never got too cold, at least in that Lounge or the NYC Sleepers and the batts held up long enough to keep the lights going. And we even got Emergency Snack Packs
Right now I'm sitting in NYP Club Acela fighting a cantankerous computer and waiting to board the 49 back to CHI. Hopefully no fires this time!
Your description of dropping the HEP sounds a lot like what happened to me on The Crescent in September. We had a fire on the #2 unit a few miles past (south of) BHM, with heavy black smoke and a visit from the local FD. Interestingly we had been having the HEP going on and off for several hours beforehand. Seems like a pattern, as I heard one of the crew thinking we had a loose cable...
Hope you have a good trip back to CHI!
MikeM
OBS Chief
Not sure who here subscribes to Trains magazine, but the current issue (the one with the Civil War cover story) has an interesting story on turbocharger failures, which figure prominently in many locomotive fires. Apparently, the fan blades in the turbo are pretty sensitive to thrown engine debris, bearings can go bad, over speed controls can malfunction, causing the blower to explode, etc. Supposedly GE's are more prone to issues, although supposedly it's gotten better in recent years. I'm not sure how many of the recent fires have been fuel line failures vs. stack fires, but I gather either case can be "interesting" to bystanders.
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