There may be other sources. Smoke filled one train and L'Enfant Station. Apparently started about 2:00 or sometime thereafter. The station was out of service the rest of the day. People were kept on the train for some time before evacuation. Source of smoke not given.
More information appreciated.
Posted by Ocala Mike (Member # 4657) on :
Tentatively attributed to "electrical arcing problems."
I can't recall....are there fire extinguishers on all Amtrak trains? What about smoke detectors, especially in sleeping cars?
Richard
Posted by RRRICH (Member # 1418) on :
I don't know, Yukon, but the train at L'Enfant was a DC Metro subway train, whose right-of-way, I believe, is underground, isn't it? AMTRAK trains use surface trackage while passing through that station.
From news stories on TV here, it appeared that the smoke-filled train was underground.
Posted by Gilbert B Norman (Member # 1541) on :
Mr. Harris, off topic, but I note that "you're now back home" and standing on Red Clay soil.
Some of your postings inferred you were "not exactly in love" with Baghdad by the Bay.
I haven't been there in 25 years; not any kind of boycott - just simply lost touch with anyone I knew from around there.
Posted by George Harris (Member # 2077) on :
Mr. Norman: True about SF. I will be back there for a while sometime in the next couple of months for a month or so, but then to true retirement.
Back to our regularly schedule program: L'Enfant Metro station is underground, and is a cross station. One line under SW D Street. The other under SW 7th Street. Blue and Orange Lines on D, Green and Yellow on 7th. Can't remember seeing which line had the smoke.
Posted by George Harris (Member # 2077) on :
This report includes a couple of pictures. To explain some of what you see in the picture:
The tunnel is constructed from steel segment plates bolted together.
In the top picture what you are seeing, from left to right: A man's feet (obviously), the running rail, with two track fasteners showing. These are an early version, with bolted rail clips, next the burned and partly melted third rail coverboard, finally the tunnel wall segments. The third rail itself cannot be seen.
The bottom picture, going from bottom up: Running rail across the lower part of the picture, with four fasteners in view. Above it the conductor rail (commonly called third rail). Two supports seen in the picture. There appear to be the fiberglass version. The apparent taper in left to right indicates that this is an end approach, that is a section tapering in elevation of the top to a lower elevation below that of a contact shoe at its unsupported height. The likely purpose here is a side to side change in the third rail position. Above the third rail is seen the coverboard, with the obviously burned section at mid-picture. The two "L" shaped devices above the coverboard are connectors between electrical cables to the left that attach to the conductor rail, four of them seen in the picture, and the electrical cables that go into conduits to pass under the track or to a power source or breaker box. In this location, I suspect these to be going under the track.
WMATA power is 750VDC. These cables are 1000 MCM copper. The conductor rail is steel 150 lb/yd NCM. What NCM stands for I do not know.