Norfolk Southern train derails in Ohio; blocks NY-CHI mainline for entire weekend

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SWANTON — The main railroad route between Toledo and Chicago remained blocked and inoperable Friday evening following a train derailment near downtown Swanton.

A westbound train struck an unoccupied vehicle near the Main Street crossing shortly after 10 p.m. Thursday. It then derailed at a set of track switches west of the crossing, with its engines landing between the two main tracks and railcars piling up on and around the tracks, said Rosanne Hoelzle, village administrator. No injuries were reported.

In a statement, Norfolk Southern said the collision caused two locomotives and 14 intermodal rail cars to derail. Twelve of the derailed cars were transporting empty shipping containers, and two of the cars contained consumer products.

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Reports are that the driver of the car blocking the crossing was drunk.

That particular line is one of the busier mainlines in the nation for coal and intermodal traffic. Both Amtrak trains that run on that line, the Lake Shore Limited and Capitol Limited, were delayed by at least 8 hours then cancelled and "bustituted" using school buses.

LINK

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Amtrak’s eastbound trains from Chicago, 48 and 30, the Capitol Limited, made it as far as Bryan, Ohio, 53 miles west of Toledo and near the Indiana state line, a stop for the Lake Shore Limited but not for the Capitol Limited. Amtrak’s westbound trains heading for Chicago, 49 and 29, got as far as Toledo, where they arrived on or close to schedule. Amtrak secured buses from a local school district, but not enough to handle all the passengers, many of whom had to wait for four to six hours for buses from Bryan transporting 48’s and 30’s passengers. When they eventually made it to Bryan, they continued their trips by rail on 48’s and 30’s equipment, which reversed direction.

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