The 1999 Carnes, Iowa train collision was a train collision that occurred at Carnes, Iowa on November 17, 1999, on the Union Pacific Railroad (UP)'s Worthington subdivision.
| 1999 Carnes, Iowa train collision | |
|---|---|
 An aerial shot of the train wreck on November 18, 1999. | |
| Details | |
| Date | November 17, 1999 |
| Location | Carnes, Iowa |
| Country | United States |
| Line | Worthington subdivision |
| Operator | Union Pacific Railroad (UP) |
| Incident type | Train collision at Carnes, Iowa due to a switch being incorrectly aligned |
| Statistics | |
| Trains | 2 |
| Deaths | 2 (one on train, one on on the road) |
| Injured | 1 |
Background
editTrains and crews involved
editOn November 17, 1999, Union Pacific (UP) grain train GEFWMI-15 was travelling northbound from Fort Worth, Texas to Miloma, Minnesota, the train consisted of three locomotives, C40-8 #9117, SD50 #5059, and SD40-2 #3081, they were pulling 75 empty grain cars, weighing in at 2,583 tonnes (2,583,000 kg; 5,695,000 lb).[1][2]
Meanwhile, UP manifest freight, MVPNP-17 was travelling southbound from Valley Park based in Minneapolis, Minnesota to North Platte, Nebraska, the train also consisted of three locomotives, C30-7 #477, C36M #592, and SD40-2 #3509, which was pulling 126 freight cars, with 91 cars being loaded, and 35 cars being empty, weighing in at 12,470 tonnes (12,470,000 kg; 27,490,000 lb).[1][2]
The crew involved in train MVPNP-17, were 23-year-old Paul Schmidt, who was the conductor in the manifest train, and 27-year-old Jason Haller, who was the engineer in the manifest train. The crew of train GEFWMI-15 were unknown.[3][4]
Collision
editBefore 11:30 PM, train GEFWMI-15 had arrived at Milepost 232.1 based in Carnes, Iowa, following standard protocol, the engineer brought the train to a stop on the mainline, resting right adjacent to the north end of the new passing siding. The grain train was at a standstill to undergo a scheduled crew change.[2]
Waiting on the parallel gravel road right next to the locomotives was a contract crew van, which had 45-year-old Dale Evans, ready to swap out the rail workers.[2][3][4] The plan was clear: the northbound train would sit safely on the main track while the heavy southbound manifest train would diverge into the new 10,800-foot (3,300 m) siding and proceed safely past them.[1][2]
At around 11:30 PM, train MVPNP-17 had approached the north switch of the siding at Milepost 232.1, when switching off the main line into the siding, the 12,470-tonne (12,470,000 kg; 27,490,000 lb) train was supposed to slow down. All three locomotives of MVPNP-17 strike the two locomotives of train GEFWMI-15, causing five of the six locomotives, and 30 cars to derail, and start a fire.[1][2][5]
The next day, on November 18, 1999, two people were confirmed dead; these being 23-year-old conductor Paul Schmidt, who jumped from his train, and 45-year-old van driver Dale Evans, while 27-year-old engineer Jason Haller was injured.[3][4] A report from the Sioux City Journal had described the accident as "dark territory". Total property damage was $3,000,000 ($5,798,042 in 2026).[6]
Investigation
editThe National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) would launch an investigation into the accident, but they found out that the event recorder was destroyed in the accident.[7] NTSB spokesman Phil Frame would later state; "We have asked the Federal Railroad Administration to require it. It has been on our 10 most-wanted list of safety recommendations for some time."[3][4] It would later be discovered that a switch into the siding was incorrectly aligned.
Aftermath
editAfter the accident, all three locomotives of train MVPNP-17 (C30-7 #477, C36M #592 and SD40-2 #3509), and C40-8 #9117 of train GEFWMI-15 were damaged beyond repair, retired by UP on November 30, 1999 and scrapped on site.[1][8] SD50 #5059 was also damaged beyond repair and was moved to Council Bluffs, Iowa, but was later shipped to North Little Rock, Arkansas on February 13, 2000, it was retired by UP on February 25, 2000 and was scrapped.[9]
SD40-2 #3081 was repaired and returned to service. It continued service with the Union Pacific Railroad until being rebuilt at their Jenks shops based in North Little Rock, Arkansas on December 16, 2015, into an SD40N and renumbered to #1839 on February 26, 2016.
See also
editReferences
edit- 1 2 3 4 5 Extra Twenty-two Hundred South. Issues 119. 2000. Dover Printing. p. 31
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Two Die In Iowa Train Collision - CBS News". www.cbsnews.com. 1999-11-18. Retrieved 2026-05-23.
- 1 2 3 4 "The Locomotive Engineer Newsletter". www.ble-t.org. December 1999. Archived from the original on 2017-08-08. Retrieved 2026-05-23.
- 1 2 3 4 "Locomotive Engineer Newsletter" (PDF). BLE News. December 1999. p. 4. Retrieved 2026-05-24.
- ↑ Schmidt, Walt (2005-04-14). "Accident closes UP mainline in Iowa". Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen. Retrieved 2026-05-24.
- ↑ Kcenler, Mike (1999-11-18). "Crash occurs in 'dark territory;' train's 'black box' is recovered" (PDF). Sioux City Journal. Retrieved 2026-05-24.
- ↑ Department of Transportation and Related Agencies Appropriations for 2003: DoT, Federal Railroad Administration. U.S. Government Printing Office. 2002. p. 818.
- ↑ Extra Twenty-two Hundred South. Issues 119. 2000. Dover Printing. p. 30
- ↑ Extra Twenty-two Hundred South. Issues 120. 2000. Dover Printing. p. 31