The P&WV Hi-Line

PWV101 · Last edited by PWV101 on Tue Sep 26, 2006 7: 05 am; edited 1 time in total

The crews arrived Sunday morning around 9:30 AM. Shortly after that 4 NS units(+1 UP) came up the branch to assist in pulling the derailed cars onto the rerailer. The cars that were still on the rails were moved out. They split the derailed cars into 2 groups between the 2 old UP red box cars. The NS engines hooked up and pulled down towards Clairton to get the first group of derailed cars back on good rail via the rerailer. WLE power then came up and pulled the other group of derailed cars up on the rerailers. The cars hooked up to NS power were worked with first. It took some time to get the last box car up to a part of the rail so that with the others it could be pulled to the rerailer. Things were going fairly well until the rail on the creek side began to break at numerous places. The last box car was a problem and it took a lot of work to finally get it and the others on good rail. I was there for quite a while and found the technique for clearing the derailment very interesting. Enjoy the photos.

JR/JZ

Hi-Line Webmaster PWVJer takes in the sights.

ple1556 · Joined: 21 Apr 2005 Posts: 42 Location: Monroeville PA

What a kick in the pants for the Wheeling. Anybody know how old the Clairton branch's roadbed is?
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High green!!

PWVJer · Joined: 13 Dec 2005 Posts: 946

Ple, this section dates back to the West Side Belt days. 1903/04 coal mine traffic and a little later...some mill(Carnegie/USS) materials. It never lived uo to George Gould's real dreams. WWII(1940's) was most likely the best of times for this branch. H.V Worley's "West Side Belt" book has some nice info. & pics.

JZ.

Tim B. · Joined: 17 Nov 2005 Posts: 1 Location: Pierce

This stretch of track was washed out during the expressway construction. Seems to me the WLE should have gone after the PA and contractors at the time for $$ to restore the track to acceptable condition.

M.JCT. · Joined: 01 Jun 2005 Posts: 86 Location: Mifflin Junction

JR/JZ As always great work.What a show,and all this for free,you got to love digital!You got to love this site.

PWV101 · Posted: Mon Sep 25, 2006 8: 21 pm Post subject: Re: Great show

[quote="M.JCT."]JR/JZ As always great work.What a show,and all this for free,you got to love digital!You got to love this site.[/quote]

Thanks, M. Jct. Just a few years ago the ability to share these images with anyone who wants to see them would have been impossible. I do love digital and the web. Long live a free web!

JR

70sNW · Posted: Tue Sep 26, 2006 7: 50 am Post subject:

Great pictures. Thanks for all of the work you guys do to keep this site going.

Does anyone know where WE was receiving the detour traffic from NS?

CuriousGeorge · Joined: 08 Jan 2006 Posts: 50 Location: Monongahela, PA

What I'm wondering is, who's financialy responsibile for the re-railment work. The W&LE or NS? After all, it was an NS train that caused the de-railment.

I'm quite surprised that the W&LE even allowed this big of a train down the Clariton Branch . . . .

Dan

mga2300 · Joined: 19 Apr 2005 Posts: 2 Location: Sutersville,pa

Just another fine NS Train Blocking Job! Two long flats together with tonnage on both sides, just fantastic, lucky the cars just rolled the rail and are not all over the country side. I've seen them loaded with pipe, and still next to a tank car, what brains!