Train incidents investigated
| Sunday, Dec 06 2009 08:07 PM
Last Updated Sunday, Dec 06 2009 08:08 PM
Two railroad incidents outside Tehachapi early Sunday kept emergency officials busy. No one was hurt.
In the second incident, 15 cars of an eastbound BNSF Railway train derailed around 1:30 a.m. near Keene.
The cars rolled over on their sides while rounding a sharp curve near the Rowen siding. The cars were located near the middle of the train and were empty. They were used to transport new automobiles. Train traffic was not interrupted.
County firefighters from Keene and Tehachapi responded as did a Hazmat unit from east Bakersfield. An inspection found no chemicals or hazardous materials were involved. The derailment, visible from the westbound lanes of Highway 58, took place where the allowable train speed is 25 mph.
A heavy-equipment contractor shoved the derailed cars off the track. Tow equipment continued to work on site during the day Sunday. Railroad workers will inspect tracks for damage, make repairs if necessary and clean up the mess at a later date. Cause of the low-speed accident is still under investigation. The derailment came about an hour after a train versus car accident in Monolith, about 4.5 miles east of Tehachapi.
A young mother and her two children escaped injury when their disabled SUV was demolished by a Union Pacific freight train.
The unidentified driver was reportedly on Tehachapi Boulevard near Monolith when heavy fog impaired visibility. When she missed a turn in the road, the SUV got stuck on eastbound tracks. Unable to budge the vehicle, she got her children out and away from the tracks.
As they waited for the driver's husband to pick them up, an eastbound Union Pacific train appeared out of the fog. Though it slowed for an emergency stop, the train hit the stranded SUV and pushed it along the tracks for almost a quarter mile before coming to rest. No damage to the train was reported.
The allowable train speed near the accident site was estimated at 58 mph.
California Highway Patrol officials and railroad police are investigating.
