Runaway Train: {February 2} marks the 25th anniversary of one of Helena's worst disasters

[mahatmakanejeeves]

They were talking about this when I was out there, and that was over 20 years ago. It left an impression.

Other than the temperature, there are some amazing similarities to what happened at Lac-Mégantic .

Gene Fisher Independent Record - The twisted and shattered train which exploded at 4:48 a.m. on {February} 2, 1989, burned with clouds of dark smoke. The explosions caused by the runaway railroad cars rocked the capital city, cutting off electricty and forecing the evacuation of thousands as wind chills dipped to 70 degrees below zero, 25 years-ago today.

RUNAWAY TRAIN Today marks the 25th anniversary of one of Helena's worst disasters

February 02, 2014 6:15 am • By MARGA LINCOLN Independent Record

It was about 4:30 a.m. Feb. 2, 1989. The temperature had plummeted to minus 27 degrees Fahrenheit — with an estimated wind chill of minus 70. ... A crash and two explosions ripped through the night, and the violent tremor shook people from their sleep. ... Few thought runaway train. ... It would go down as one of the worst disasters in Helena’s history and one of the worst train wrecks in Montana’s. ... Yet — people would marvel at how lucky they were that no one was killed or seriously injured.
....

The cause

Following an extensive investigation, the National Transportation Safety Board released a report Feb. 12, 1990. It noted a combination of factors including the extreme weather, equipment failures and human error. ... In the early morning hours, Montana Rail Link Train 121 had stopped on a mountain grade at Austin near Mullan Pass to switch around helper engines because the lead unit had lost heat. ... To make the switch, the crew uncoupled the locomotives from the freight cars, leaving them parked unattended on a 2.2 percent mountain grade.

The temperature in Austin at the time, according to the National Weather Service, was 36 degrees below zero, and 10 inches of snow was on the ground. ... The probable cause of the accident, said NTSB, was the failure of the crew of Train 121 “to properly secure their train by placing the train brakes in emergency and applying hand brakes when it was left standing unattended on a mountain grade.” ... A contributing factor was the failure of MRL management to adequately assess the qualifications and training of employees placed in train service.

Earlier in the day, train crews had noted leakage from the airbrakes because of the extreme cold, which was not corrected before leaving Helena and heading for the pass. ... A few of the other topics addressed were faulty cab heaters, a crew that was improperly dressed to handle a 72 degree drop in temperature within 48 hours, and “inaccurate waybills” about the actual shipment in the box cars and tanker cars.

1989 Helena train wreck

The old reports at the NTSB aren't online yet. Start at Railroad Accident Reports. Go back to page 19, and you can read this:

Title, Collision and derailment of Montana Rail Link Freight Train with Locomotive Units and Hazardous Materials Release. Helena, Montana. {February} 2, 1989. Event date, /2/1989. Report date, 12/6/1989. City, Helena MT. NTSB# RAR-89-05, NTIS# PB89-916305.