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Broken Down Train Blocks Crossings In Cantonment, Cottage Hill – Again
March 8, 2016
A CSX train blocked crossings from Becks Lake Road in Cantonment north to McKenzie Road in Cottage Hill Tuesday morning, leaving numerous residents unable to enter or exit their neighborhoods for hours.
According to CSX officials, the train was stopped due to a warning light. The train was on the move a little after 9 a.m.
“First responders have access to the impacted neighborhoods through a private road should the need arise,” Escambia County spokesperson Joy Tusbooka said while the train was stopped.
An similar incident occurred on January 28, blocking many of the same crossing for an entire morning.
Pictured top: An aerial view of the train blocking crossings in Cantonment. Image courtesy Eric McCowan for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge. Pictured below: The train blocks Becks Lake Road in Cantonment. NorthEscambia.com photo, click to enlarge.
Comments
38 Responses to “Broken Down Train Blocks Crossings In Cantonment, Cottage Hill – Again”
RMG for safer living. It is the right and duty to protect our citizens. If CSX will not correct this problem, then our SHERIFF has that duty to open paths for emergency personnel. Is HEAVY equipment better or is it better to blow a railway car or two or three out of the way to clear an opening?
Also I hope Amtrak returns. A train ride to New Orleans sounds nice,
There are 4 ways into that subdivision. Usually people can take one of the four roads.. Eaden Lane, Cottage Hill Rd, Williams Ditch, Or McKenzie. All four were blocked and people were speeding from one road to another trying to get out and not be late for work, school, or where ever they needed to go. I never thought that a stalled train would block all 4…
Here is a link that the FRA has on http://www.iowadot.gov/iowarail/resources/publications/blocked_crossings_emergency_response.pdf
Ummm yes the neighborhoods were permitted. Permitted by the local government. Not the railroad. That’s where you should turn. Out of all those crossings one should be made an over pass or an under pass. It’s kinda like moving next door to a pig farm and then complaining about the smell. In this case the remedy isn’t the railroad maintaining their trains better. It’s building another way over or under the tracks and not being dependent on the railroad to fix the problem. If it’s such a problem then the local government should offer the solution. Build a bridge.
@JCurious
Which came first? Railroad or subdivisions?
The answer to the question is irrelevant. Both were zoned and permitted for their respective types of use.
CSXs inability to properly maintain their equipment regularly results in longer than acceptable delays for those of us who apparently live on the wrong side of the tracks.
How would CSX respond if we the neighbors blocked every train crossing on a regular and consistent basis thus preventing them from doing their business?
sorry for everyones delay but it happens.
Next time this happens i’m going to sell donuts on both side of the track. $1.00 ea
I lost my job today thanks to this incident. This is ridiculous they can’t get the trains to run properly. I am currently working on getting an attorney.
Same train is now blocking half of East Milton…..
Sorry, but CSX is the authority. Much to powerful!
I also would like to know who Joyce spoke with because I just called that number and was told this….”typically CSX does not reimburse for lost wages due to a train being broke down because of mechanical issues”. I was then given an e-mail address to send my request and voice my concerns to. FYI if anyone else would like to voice your concerns……
tellcsx@csx.com
To all the folks still complaining about the train blocking traffic: What will you do when you encounter an auto accident with fatalities? Sue the deceased? Stuff happens, unfortunate as it seems. Take a breath and relax!
Which came first? Railroad or subdivisions?
If it’s such a problem build an overpass over the rail line.
Don’t know who Joyce talked to, but I called the number about filing claim for loss wages and was told they had no knowledge of folks being allowed to file claim for loss wages. Has anyone else tried?
I know it’s frustrating, but in defense of CSX , railroad jobs pay well and if trucks had to bring in everything that the train was transporting, we would really have a traffic jam. And no, I don’t work for the railroad.
Stuff happens. Glad it wasn’t an accident causing this again. It kind of scares me though. With Williams Ditch, McKenzie, Cottage Hill, Eden and Becks lake ALL blocked at the same time those residents were trapped. I did look on the map and their appears to be some sort of road off Quintette/Parker Ln that might be useable. I’ve never been down that far so Imdont know for sure. Looked like a small dirt road?
Williams Ditch Road is open! I guess that they split the train there to allow access in and out of Cottage Hill.
The roads is now unblocked.
This is getting ridiculous. I go threw that crossings three to four times a day. Three of the four times daily there is a train there blocking the crossing for 20 to 25 minutes. My husband works down there and this morning we were stuck there for forty minutes and than he had to walk the rest of the way to work. Than I had to sit there for an additional thirty minutes because I was blocked in by vehicles and the people wouldn’t move. My husband is a insulin dependent diabetic and sometimes I have to bring his meds to him at work, normally during lunch hours. And it’s not good when I can’t get to him. Yes most the time he has then on him but like everyone he forgets sometimes. Without his meds he can go in a coma. Regardless, I just wish they could work out a more efficient schedule to run the trains that didn’t hender everyone that works at the factories down there. Most people have to be there at 6, lunch at 11 and leave at 4:30 and we are always stopped by two trains a day for close to thirty minutes.
Train is finally moving south. Thank CXS for the fix.
I’m glad they are repairing the wheel on the train before it fell off, but they moved that train further up to unblock some other junctions before they stopped it blocking all three of Cottage Hill’s exits. Why couldn’t they have at least left one of them unblocked before stopping for their repairs? That would have been considerate. Oh, wait…..I’m talking about CSX that blocks Hwy 29 almost every day during rush hour instead of scheduling for a less traffic time. Perhaps we need to try and elect some county commissioners who will address this sort of issue with an overpass on Hwy 29 thru Cantonment .
i talked to a csx guy the other day about crossings being blocked longer than they used too. he said csx is making the trains longer to save money by not running as many trains. really?
>What’s the latest? Not gonna keep driving back up the road!
This story reflects the latest. (Nothing new, yet)
What’s the latest? Not gonna keep driving back up the road!
Michelle,
Why don’t you go take that job so you can prevent “ALL” of the mechanical failures.
It’s always amusing to see replies with all the answers and educated language.
CXS Men be safe and ignore all the rocket scientist on here
You would think they could bring an engine from the north somewhere to come down and attach to the cars and pull them to make an opening for the Cottage Hill people .
How do you know THEIR job is more important than the people that are blocked in? Do you work for the railroad?
People get a grip! Things happen. I have lived here my whole life and this is not a common thing! Nobody PLANS for a train to break down! Just like you don’t plan on your car breaking down! I would rather them take the time to fix it than it to derail or worse!!
Amen Byron! This could have been much, much worse than a days wages! I was involved in a major train derailment years ago when a speeding train came off the tracks and tank cars began exploding at 5:30 a.m. We were about 100 yards from the point of impact and had to evacuate immediately because of the gases! This situation is out of our control…no one has been hurt….just chill out for heavens sake and appreciate the fact that we are so blessed!
Normally we wouldn’t mind the delay, things happen. But besides being late for school and other appointments this morning, my daughter will have to wait 3-4 hours for her meds and to see a doctor . See, she was up all night with asthma attacks and really needs those meds and her doc. We’ve been waiting all night. And there’s no access to us in case of emergency. Would it be possible for CSX to seperate the cars so residents and emergency vehicles can get through?
Might be time to cut an access from Becks Lake to Gonzalez, via Elder’s Lane and another from McKenzie Road to Quintett Road?
They have detectors to check the heat on the bearings of every car. If the detector goes off ,the train must stop….it’s better than a derailment
People, things could be worse, and we need to be appreciative they you woke up this morning instead of dying in your sleep from chemical inhalation, such as chlorine gas, or liquid sulfur contamination of our water supply. Chill out and let them do THEIR job – its more important than YOUR job.
The train must be 5 miles long to block all exits between Becks Lake Road all the way to McKenzie Rd. That is a very long train. I have lived in Cottage Hill for almost 40 years and though we have frequent CSX breakdowns, they have never blocked ALL the exits. Besides maintenance issues, CSX has some real public relations issues now. I sure hope someone has the authority to rattle their cage.
Yes you can file for lost wages. Call 1-800-232-0144. I did
CSX contact… 1-800-232-0144 … Let’em know…
Entire Cottage Hill community is blocked in. There is no access regardless of a report of such… The access they’re referencing is a private property trail that’s gated.
Does anyone know which way the train was going North or South? It depends on where the middle engine is as if they can detach it and open an exit up.
A train that long has more than one engine ,whats the deal . Lived here for 45 years and can’t remember this every happening before ,now twice in 3 months. Where do people file for lost wages with CSX.
I just talked to a cop who lives in Cottage Hill. He said it is going to be at least 3 hours because one of the wheels on the train almost fell off.