(The following article by Don Colburn was posted on the Oregonian website on August 22.)
PORTLAND, Ore. — A railroad tunnel southeast of Eugene that was closed by fire Aug. 14 is scheduled to reopen late today, allowing freight and passenger service to resume.
“The fire is extinguished, and we expect to reopen the tunnel sometime Monday afternoon,” Union Pacific spokesman John Bromley said Sunday.
The fire, apparently caused by sparks from a train or exhaust, disrupted Amtrak passenger service between the Northwest and California and delayed freight for West Coast shippers.
As many as 20 trains a day, mostly freights, use the 3,164-foot-long timber-lined tunnel owned by Union Pacific. It lies 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 Eugene and Klamath Falls, matching the Coast Starlight’s schedule. More than 1,200 passengers a day travel some portion of the route between Los Angeles and Seattle.
Amtrak’s Cascades service between Seattle and Eugene was not affected.
The tunnel is on a high mountain pass. Rail officials said steep terrain and heavy smoke had hampered Union Pacific’s efforts to fight the fire.
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.