(The following article was posted on the Klamath Falls Herald and News website on August 23.)
KLAMATH FALLS, Ore. — A fire in a railroad tunnel near Willamette Pass that has disrupted Amtrak service between the Pacific Northwest and California for the last eight days is finally out.
A spokesman for Union Pacific said train service was expected to resume today. However, a staff member at the Amtrak station in Klamath Falls said the northbound train would not go through today.
The fire, apparently caused by sparks from a train or exhaust, has also delayed freight for West Coast shippers. Crews had difficulty fighting it because of steep terrain.
The tunnel is one of 21 along the Union Pacific line that runs from Klamath Falls through Chemult, crossing the Cascade Mountains near Willamette Pass and descending through the Salt Creek canyon to Eugene.
As many as 20 trains a day use the line that opened in 1927. The tunnel that caught fire is about 33 miles east of Oakridge.
Freight trains were rerouted last week, and Amtrak halted Coast Starlight passenger service in both directions between Oakland, Calif., and Eugene.
On Friday, Amtrak started shuttling passengers by bus between Klamath Falls and Eugene, matching the Coast Starlight’s schedule. More than 1,200 passengers a day travel some portion of the route between Los Angeles and Seattle.
The fire is the second to close a key Oregon-to-California tunnel in nine months. A November fire closed a timber-lined tunnel south of Medford owned by Central Oregon Pacific Railroad. That tunnel is not expected to reopen until October.