(The following story by Stephen J. Lee appeared on the Grand Forks Herald website on April 24, 2009.)
GRAND FORKS, N.D. — The unusually wet spring has meant lots of problems for railroads in the region, from flooding rivers blocking rail bridges from Minnesota to North Dakota, to flooded fields covering tracks.
Amtrak, the nation’s passenger train, has had to bypass its regular route from Fargo through Grand Forks to Minot because of floodwaters.
BNSF, the nation’s largest freight train, has had its routes through this region disrupted, especially by bridges across the Red River being closed for weeks. Now, most are open again.
Late Tuesday, a couple of cars of the short-line Northern Plains Railroad filled with soybeans went off the track near Johnstown, about 35 miles northwest of Grand Forks.
“We’ve had soft track conditions the last couple of days,” said Vice President Larry Jamieson, who was at the site Wednesday. “Just from the wet spring, the frost coming out, all over our track this year. It’s kind of unique; we have had more soft track just because of the wet conditions than we have ever had.”
The small train, which had just loaded soybeans at nearby Honeyford was moving slowly when it happened, and no real damage was done.
The cars were vacuumed out, and the beans will be returned to the elevator in Honeyford until the track is fixed and the cars are put back. By Monday, it should be fixed, Jamieson said.
Meanwhile, 5 1/2 miles of Northern Plains track near Oslo, Minn., that have been flooded for weeks will open again later today, he said.
Northern Plains, started 12 years ago, is based in Fordville and runs almost 400 miles of track in northeastern North Dakota and northwestern Minnesota.
The train that derailed near Honeyford, which is the end of Northern Plains track, was headed for Thief River Falls. It would have been hooked to a Canadian Pacific train and sent to the West Coast.
Northern Plains leases most of its track from CP, the former Soo Line.
CP is tied up right now with track troubles around Valley City where floodwaters from the Sheyenne River have caused problems.
A generally slow market this winter and spring has meant little movement of freight cars for many railroads. The flooding in the Red River Valley hasn’t helped, either.
“We haven’t been able to move much the last three weeks because of water over the tracks,” Jamieson said.