Traffic & Transit
Fires Lit On Chicago Rail Tracks To Keep Trains Running In Cold
The flaming train tracks took some commuters by surprise.
CHICAGO — Flames could be seen on commuter tracks in Chicago early Wednesday morning in an attempt to keep trains running while temperatures plummeted. Some commuters called the experience of riding on the flaming tracks "surreal."
Rail crews were using the fires to heat up the tracks so that trains could make it to their destinations.
Unfortunately, temperatures continued to plummet, and most rail services — including Amtrak, South Shore and Metra — have been canceled for Wednesday and Thursday.
Find out what's happening in Chicagofor free with the latest updates from Patch.
Wednesday marked the coldest Jan. 30 on record in Chicago, the National Weather Service said.
While flaming switch heaters are a fairly standard practice on railroads in frigid temperatures, crews in Chicago also had to soak rope in kerosene and put it against the rails to warm them, according to a report by Forbes.
Find out what's happening in Chicagofor free with the latest updates from Patch.
It’s so cold in Chicago, crews had to set fire to commuter rail tracks to keep the trains moving smoothly. https://t.co/ccrTwwwO6C pic.twitter.com/av7o5opEQ8
— ABC News (@ABC) January 30, 2019
Very cool visual pic.twitter.com/qBioWGo9tH
— north side sox fan club president (@mateodechicago) January 30, 2019
Top image/video via YouTube - example of switch heaters in action on the Metra, from 2018.
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