Amtrak Line Sabotaged.

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Police Investigate Apparent Amtrak Sabotage

20071128_CBS3_Quinones_13_W.jpg
Reporting
Todd Quinones
PHILADELPHIA (CBS 3) ― Police are investigating an apparent case of railroad sabotage against Amtrak, CBS 3 has learned.

Amtrak officials have confirmed exclusively to CBS 3 that someone removed numerous e clips that hold the rails to the ties.

Authorities said it happened two weeks ago near the Bridesburg train station. Amtrak officials normally inspect the tracks about twice a week which is how the missing clips were discovered.

A typical Acela train can weigh more than 600 tons and at speeds close to 100 miles per hour the trains depend on the e clips to stay on the rails.

Amtrak reported the incident to Philadelphia police and the Transportation Security Administration and officially released a statement saying:

"Amtrak Police have confirmed that they have opened an investigation into the incident of the missing e clips from the railroad," Karina Romeo, Amtrak Corporate Communications.

CBS 3 has also learned that while some e clips will break during normal wear and tear. In this case, several went missing all one right next to another and according to Amtrak officials that is unusual.

Amtrak said travelers were not in any immediate danger. But sources told CBS 3 that the rails did move and if the clips had been removed from curved portions of the track it could have caused a train to derail.

Officials do not know who is responsible or what their motive was but believe the average thief would not have the knowledge to know how to remove the e clips.
 
Police Investigate Apparent Amtrak Sabotage
But sources told CBS 3 that the rails did move and if the clips had been removed from curved portions of the track it could have caused a train to derail.

Way to go CBS, now they will know what to do next time.
 
Yup, all it would take would be for a rail to move out of alignment to cause a catastrophe. The person or persons would have had to have access to track maintenance equipment which makes it look like an inside job. It's still under investigation.
 
Wow, I heard about this A state away, Back where I'm at two nights ago, wind blew a hazards Tanker off a bridge into a bay, And they can't find it! They still don't know if it broke open but, what a mess seeing those cars every where!
 
Wow, I heard about this A state away, Back where I'm at two nights ago, wind blew a hazards Tanker off a bridge into a bay, And they can't find it! They still don't know if it broke open but, what a mess seeing those cars every where!

...And here I thought it was nigh impossible to physically lose a car (losing track of it, well, that's another matter altogether...:o ). :eek:
 
They wouldn't have to have access to track maintenance tools. I've done enough worked around railroad right of ways. I can think of several ways someone could easily remove those clips without railroad tools. Anyway you look at it , who ever did that should be thumped on the head a few times.

Bill
 
...And here I thought it was nigh impossible to physically lose a car (losing track of it, well, that's another matter altogether...:o ). :eek:

Penn Central managed to loose a train in the '60s.

I mean, they found it eventually, but it took a few months and ended up in like, Mexico or something.
 
First post here in a while...


How do you loose a train?!

Thinking about it some railroad, or loco builder, lost one in the UK a while back, took em like a week to find the sucker...
 
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