Where Does the Snow Go on the Hill Side

Earlier,John Cole asked on the list and asked me by phone about the method of handling snow pushed against the hill side by a flanger or pilot plow. I didn't have a really good answer other than my opinion that the plow pilot on the locomotives would push it off the other side. The following RGS document shows that sometimes the snow on the hill side caused derailments...

Jerry Day

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Rio Grande Southern Railroad Company Bulletin No. 1050
November 8,1916

Ridgway, Colorado

All Conductors:
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We had two derailments of Plow Flanger Number 03 on March 6, 1916, the last being at MP 43-1/2 when it derailed and went down the side of mountain a distance of about 200 yards.

This plow-flanger was working south from Vance Junction with three engines. It being the latter part of the snow season, the cuts were naturally deep with sides high and hard on up-hill or right side going south, flanger was handling a recent fall of about two feet of wet heavy snow which had drifted some, and it banked up on plow with no chance to get rid of it or throw it out of the cuts.

Plow-Flanger left track on tangent at both places, going off on left side, just as it came out of cuts at places where cuts on right or u-hill side were high and left side practically bare. No defects in track or flanger were found which could have caused either derailment, consequently this shows conclusively that both derailments were caused by the unusual weight of snow crowding against the high, hard side of snow cut on right side, which simply forced the flanger to climb the rail on the left, or bare side of track and follow the line of least resistance. The conditions were admittedly unusual, but the cause of the first derailment should have been apparent to the conductor following the first derailment at MP 43-1/3, and the second deplorable derailment at 43-1/2 thus averted.

At the investigation of this accident, it was shown that neither of the plow-flangers had ever been derailed by snow where the depth of snow on both rails was about the same, or regardless of the depth of snow on either rail if the plow had any chance to get rid of the snow.

While we expect employees handling plow-flangers to use their best judgment, we do not want them to take such chances as will endanger the lives of employees or incur unusual expense to equipment in trying to do the impossible.

C. D. Wolfinger, Superintendent



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 02/18/2010 09:42PM by Jerry Day.