This topic is on another board, but still, do you think this may affect Amtrak?- and BTW, on THAT^ board, I AM EMD455
RRRICH Member # 1418
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I assume you are concerned about the ash eruptions of yesterday and a possible major eruption -- the ash eruptions which have occurred so far will probably not cause any problems, but if the winds switch, there could be ashfalls along the routes of the Coast Starlight and Portland section of the Empire Builder. A major eruption, like the one in 1980, could cause problems if the ash and dust short out signals or switches, but the main problem could be lots of ash again covering everything.
Needless to say, if the geologists are correct, disruptions to Amtrak's scheduling will be the least of everyone's problems.
wigwagfan Member # 664
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The biggest fear would be if a sudden mudflow came down the Toutle River, which could wipe out both the BNSF bridge as well as the Interstate 5 bridges.
In the 1980 eruption, several bridges were destroyed due to the mudflow, and I believe that WSDOT and BN shut down its routes to ensure that if the bridges were wiped out, at least no one would get hurt.
The ash would be a problem if a major event occurred and the wind blew to the west. The daily weather reports for the last few days have included wind patterns for the volcano, and so far the winds are headed to the east/northeast (bad if you live in Yakima or Ellensburg).
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