(The following story appeared on the Peoria Journal Star website on July 3.)
GLADSTONE — In the form of a train’s horn, a blast of hope that things will return to normal swept Henderson County on Thursday when BNSF rail service to and from Burlington was restored.
The company rebuilt and relaid about a mile of rail bed and double track that was washed out two weeks ago when the Mississippi River levee at Gulfport breached. Burlington has been closed to the railroad since June 14, when flooding in Ottumwa, Iowa, took out a section of track there.
“What a heroic effort,” said David Hestermann, associate vice president for the railroad. “Employees and contractors worked 24/7. There were no accidents or injuries. The work ethic. The teamwork. We’re pretty proud of our people. From our meetings in Burlington and Gladstone, we learned everyone is pleased to have the trains running again.”
Hestermann said the emergency repairs took over 300,000 tons of rock and cost between $30 and $40 million, and workers were laying 300 to 600 yards of track a day.