Major bridge out on CSXT SCL line

Reports in other forums indicated that CSXT has had a major bridge washout on the old SCL near Pinopolis, SC. If this is correct this will have a major long term impact on Amtrak Florida service until the bridge rebuilt. Supposedly the old inland SAL line used by the Silver Star also has washouts.

The bridge in question is located here -

https://goo.gl/maps/mT5i75r9Wxu" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

With CSXT detouring all it's freight over the SAL line (once reopened) it might be a while before Amtrak runs to Florida again.

Edit: correct naming of pre CSXT lines.

Is this the waterway with the dam that had to be opened due to reservoir over-filling or something?

There will be major water runoff flowing thru the rivers and streams in both NC+SC for a few more days,
there have been a few dam washouts(failures)as well
In both states have emergency dam rebuilding projects are in progress.

From some of the discussions I was reading on other sites, I haven't seen anything conclusive that that bridge is out; the majority of what I was seeing was talking about the fixed span south of Kingstree, SC on the A-line that was still underwater as of yesterday. CSX's newest service bulletin:

CSX wrote:October 7, 2015

CSX operations in South Carolina continue to be impacted by recent flooding. The line between Charleston, S.C. and Florence, S.C. is flooded near Kingstree, S.C., with water levels slowly receding. Customers with freight traveling across this line should expect delays of 24 to 48 hours. Traffic scheduled through this area is being re-routed and other lines are being restored as quickly as possible to allow service to local customers.

As conditions in the area gradually improve, rail infrastructure in some locations could be as long as a week before being fully restored. CSX continues to closely monitor operations to ensure normal train operations resume as soon as possible.

That's here. Basically, as of yesterday, the waters were still too high to determine if there was a bridge there or not.


I mean, no matter what, that still means the ACL is going to be discontinuous for more than a few days. Even in the best case scenario, that the bridge is still there and the abutments and piers haven't been scoured, that might be an outage of a week or so; it is pretty unlikely that the abutments and piers haven't had at least some scour yet, considering how much water there is flowing as such a quick pace. It's pretty bad news if they have any significant scour, because the more damage you have, the closer the task is to building a new bridge from scratch. And that isn't a quick process at all: even if they can get some sort of temporary bridge up to at least get some traffic back over the A-Line, you'd still be having long-lasting effects of this. They're rerouting freight over the S-Line, but without details of the extent of the situation, there's certainly no decision yet about how Amtrak is going to fare. We should know the extent of the damages and subsequent disruptions soon, though.

From Amtrak's website as of today (10/8).

Amtrak Silver Star Service to Resume on Friday
Some trains operating between Florida and New York City remain suspended

Oct. 8, 2015
3 p.m. ET


Amtrak service on the Silver Star Trains 91 & 92 will resume normal operations on Friday, Oct. 9, after being suspended this week due to severe weather conditions. Service will operate its normal schedule between New York City and Miami, however passengers can anticipate delays.


Service on other Amtrak routes between New York City and Florida will be suspended on Friday, Oct. 9. No alternate transportation will be provided.


Palmetto Trains 89 & 90 (Savannah, Ga. - New York City) is canceled.
Silver Meteor Trains 97 & 98 (New York City - Miami) is canceled.
Auto Train 52 & 53 (Lorton, Va. - Sanford, Fla.) is canceled.


This information is correct as of the above time and date. Information is subject to change as conditions warrant.


Passengers with travel plans can confirm their train's status, change their plans or review refund information using a range of tools – including Amtrak.com, smartphone apps or by calling 800-USA-RAIL. Service Alerts, Passenger Notices and other announcements are posted at Amtrak.com/alerts.


Follow @Amtrak on Twitter.

Southbound you can't get a seat until Sunday, and a room until Monday. Seems like they could use another train on the route temporarily to play catch up.