A locomotive on fire

A locomotive on fire

Since railroading’s very inception, fire has been one of the most frightening things that can occur, and it can happen on any unit from any manufacturer at any time, usually without warning.

And thinking about it, why not? You have a constantly vibrating platform with multiple moving parts surrounded by myriad fuel lines, subjected to hard couplings, outside and subjected to all sorts of weather. Add all those factors together and it’s kind of surprising that locomotive fires are not more common than they are.

The internet has all sorts of photos/videos of locomotives on fire, mostly taken lineside of moving trains. The fact that online documentation can span anywhere from 30 years ago to today, indicates that no matter how hard builders or competent maintenance people try, occasionally something is going to go wrong.

My most interesting “as-it-happened” experience occurred one evening in 1975 while driving near Santa Fe’s Hobart Yard in Los Angeles. Anytime I was within tie-throwing distance of a railroad line I always looked for anything on the move, with my camera in the back seat with a Vivitar 283 flash attached.

Usually, I struck out. Even if I did find something it would be deep in a yard or a facility I could not access to take a photo. But that night I noticed a plume of smoke coming from a set of Santa Fe GP35s in the distance that just did not seem right. One of the units was on fire and right behind me came a gaggle of red lights flashing by on fire trucks.

I was not particularly pleased to see a locomotive on fire but decided to record the incident anyhow.

I’m not sure if it was a main generator fire or something that started in the electrical cabinet — I’m sure someone will tell me — but it seemed ferocious at the time and the firemen wasted no time dousing it. Once they had the upper hand, it seemed the men took great pleasure in making sure I got them doing their job, one seemingly hanging out the cab window a bit more when he saw me.

Ultimately, it was anti-climactic. The fire was out, the firemen dutifully rolled up their hoses, cleaned up the area, and returned to their house. I was sure this was the end of Santa Fe GP35 3347.

But I was wrong.

Santa Fe was starting a GP35 rebuild program at its San Bernardino, Calif., facility, and No. 3347, now a little on the toasty side, was included. It eventually became a BNSF unit and worked steadily until its retirement in 1999.

When finding out it was still going to have an active railroad career, I felt better. I’m not sure why, it’s just a piece of hardware, but that knowledge made the world seem a little brighter.