Re: Grass fires caused by carbon buildup in stacks
Author: Tom H
Date: 01-14-2009 - 19:41
While not passing judgement on the lawsuit in question, it is true that carbon build up in locomotive stacks does sometimes cause a trackside fire. California has more stringent requirements for stacks than Oregon and Washington. Build up can occur when a loco is idleing for a long time, then particles are blow out when the train accelerates. If a train sat for a while at Spokane then throttled up leaving town it could blow hot particles onto dry grass.