The train thundered through the mountain pass. The roar of its passage echoing off the rock walls on either side was amplified until it could be heard clearly in the small town in the valley at the mountain’s base.
As the train crossed the peak and began picking up speed on the downgrade, the engineer began applying the brake. Deadman’s curve was just a mile ahead and it was always best to to approach it at a slower pace.
“Is everything OK tonight?”
Startled, Pete looked up from his reverie, blinking owlishly. “I’m sorry. What did you say?”
“Is everything OK tonight?” the waitress repeated.
“Oh, it’s terrific! Thanks!” And it’s true, Pete reflected. It had been a fantastic dinner.
As the waitress smiled and went back to work, Pete returned to his train of thought. But it was too late. While he’d been distracted, the brake had overheated and was now a worthless hunk of warped metal. Instead of the slower pace he’d planned, Pete’s train was now approaching Deadman’s Curve like a rocket and was still accelerating.
The train exploded off the track and crashed down the rock face, bringing half the mountain down with it. The town never stood a chance.
Deadman’s Curve had won again.
One thought on “Railroad Interrupted”
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This is sad.
Did you know about Cousin Clinton? Cousin Clinton worked in the mail car on the Pennsylvania Rail Road. [True fact – Once he carried a chicken which roasted by Mrs. Edgar (May Nee: Cartwright) Bowman in a little unincorporated area known as Mountain Dale to her daughter, Ruth, who was working in what was then called Women’s Hospital in Philadelphia.]
The old Pennsylvania Rail Road has a long curving section with a steep grade between Cresson Springs and Altoona. Cousin Clinton worked in the mail car along that section of track. Once upon a time he was riding the rail and working and the train wrecked on a curve, near and visible from the present roadbed of Route 22 above Holidaysburg.
Cousin Clinton was trapped in the mail car, hanging upside down by his legs for 24 hours. Because of all the paper in the car, the rescue team could not torch the metal to cut him loose. Cousin Clinton was finally freed but died from the physical trauma.
And you thought working in the post office has become dangerous recently.
We know some of Cousin Clinton’s grandchildren. They are as old as we are.