*RARE* Pan Am LA-1 in Salem

Описание: Pan Am LA-1, a Pan Am Railways switcher based out of Lawrence, Massachusetts, works the Rousselot plant amidst a looming blizzard. Providing power are MEC 348 (EMD GP40) and BM 334 (EMD GP40). The use of dual locomotives on these local jobs has become the norm since the Grand Junction Branch has been closed for bridge repairs: the extra power is needed to accommodate for the extra work that Pan Am has temporarily taken over for CSX. The move from Peabody to Salem is documented by fifteen minutes of footage, which I've broken down for you guys below.

0:00 (Crossing Peabody Square)
MEC 348 leads the short string of empties through a deserted Peabody Square. My brother and I shot LA-1 at this exact location back in December 2011, during the final days of the gelatine plant being owned by Eastman Kodak. I wrote in those videos' descriptions that the Eastman's gelatine operation was being consolidated and moved to upstate New York, and that the future of these tracks were unknown; at the time, things didn't look good. Fortunately, the gelatine facility was picked up by Rousselot International, which manufactures gelatine for the photographic, pharmaceutical, and food industries. As a result of Rousselot's taking over the plant, these tracks, once part of the South Reading Branch Railroad and the Danvers Branch Railroad, now see an average of two trains per week.

2:45 (Switching North Street Yard)
MEC 348 arrives at the North Street yard in Salem, where BM 334 is waiting with a short string of gondolas loaded with scrap metal. The two locomotives promptly link up and begin putting their train together. The switching process is complicated by the ice, snow, and freezing wind. The yard isn't far from the ocean; in fact, the North River runs parallel to the tracks before emptying into the Beverly Harbor, making for some very heavy, very chilling winds.

11:55 (Backing Down the Essex)
BM 334 and MEC 348 push their train out of the North Street yard, along a stretch of track that was once part of the Essex Railroad, past the Salem MBTA station, and toward the switch that will connect them to the MBTA's Newburyport/Rockport Line, formally the Eastern Railroad. The bone chilling winds are even stronger here in the parking lot than they were in the yard; the North River runs just behind that concrete wall, and empties into the ocean not far from here.

13:55 (Departure from Salem)
After waiting for the MBTA Commuter Rail to clear the tracks, BM 344 and MEC 348 fly through the station, entering the Salem Tunnel and making their way toward Everett via Lynn. The echoes from the tunnel fade into the sound of the snow as 1:00 draws near.

Interestingly, there was one load of scrap left in the North Street yard. As far as I know it's still sitting there as I write this, at 3:00, when I should be studying for an exam tomorrow on environmental engineering. Truth be told, I'm not worried about the exam; judging by the quality of the roads on the ride back from Salem, I'm confident that tomorrow will be a snow day.

Subscribe to Signal Hill Productions on YouTube for more train videos and railroad history. Thanks for watching!

Facebook
  / signalhillprods  

Instagram
  / signalhillprods  

Tumblr
  / signalhillprods  

Twitter
  / signalhillprods  

URL
http://SignalHillProds.com

Filmed with a Sony Cyber-shot DSC-HX20V, in beautiful Essex County, Massachusetts. Edited with Apple iMovie.

© 2013 Signal Hill Productions