Iron Horse Roundup for November/December 2013

Edwin Valero- AP

NEW YORK- At least four people were killed and 70 injured on Sunday morning when a Metro-North commuter train derailed just north of the Spuyten Duyvil station in the Bronx.

Early reports indicate that the train was travelling at speeds in excess of 80 MPH as it headed into a curve along the Harlem river where the maximum speed limit is 30 MPH. The National Transportation Safety Board is leading the investigation and has recovered two event recorders from the crash site. At the time, the train was operating in 'push-pull' mode where the train appears to be running backwards with the locomotive pushing from the rear and controlled by the engineer in a specially equipped enclosure in the 'trailing' car. This is fairly common practice among a number of commuter rail agencies as well as some Amtrak routes.

The NTSB was already investigating a derailment and collision between two Metro-North trains along the Northeast Corridor in Connecticut back in May as well as the crashworthiness of the Kawasaki-built passenger cars involved in the May accident. In July, a northbound CSX garbage train derailed by the Spuyten Duyvil station and snarled commuter traffic overnight. According to officials there were no problems with the condition of the tracks near the depot at the time of Sunday's derailment.

The cellphone records and blood samples of the engineer- who survived the wreck and was released from the hospital- have been taken, but no word on the results from the NTSB yet.

New Mexico State Police handout

NEW MEXICO- Three people were killed over the weekend when a freight train carrying ore derailed and the locomotive fell into a creek in southwestern New Mexico.

New Mexico State Police released the names of the three on board the Southwestern Railroad freight train which was operating between the massive Freeport McMoran open put copper mine in Santa Rita, NM and the Southwestern yards at Hurley, NM. The eight carloads of iron ore the train was hauling remained upright while the locomotive- a former Conrail GP40- landed on its side after falling roughly 50 feet into an arroyo.

Law enforcement previously reported that all three victims were men, however, one of the victims was a woman, Ann Thompson, 50, originally from Paulden, Ariz. The other two victims were Donald White, 38, of Silver City, and Steven Crose, 60, also of Paulden, Ariz.

Crose and White both worked for the railroad. Thompson was Crose's girlfriend, said Wanda Shepard, Crose's cousin. It is also unknown why Thompson was inside the locomotive at the time of the crash as she did not work for Southwestern Railroad, Shepard said. Both Thompson and Crose had recently moved to the Hurley area just three weeks ago for Crose's job.

"They loved being on the train," Shepard said of White and her cousin. "They loved it. It was their calling, and they were really proud of their jobs and what they did."

Although the train was carrying no hazardous materiel, the fire department from nearby Silver City, NM was called in to contain a diesel spill from the derailed locomotive.

A subsidiary of Western Railroad Builders, Inc, the Southwestern operates two disconnected lines in southern New Mexico. In 1990, the railroad purchased a cluster of former Santa Fe lines radiating out of Whitewater, NM to copper mines in Tyrone and Santa Rita in Grant County, NM. By 1994, the line from Whitewater to the then-Southern Pacific interchange in Demming, NM was purchased from the Santa Fe and by 2002, Western Railroad Builders agreed to a lease with BNSF for the line between Demming and Hatch, NM. To the east, the Southwest began operations on more than 200 miles of former BNSF trackage between Clovis and Carlsbad, NM when they entered into a lease agreement with the BNSF in 2004.

Western Railroad builders also operates the 250+ mile Cimarron Valley Railroad in Kansas, Oklahoma and Colorado as well as the 40-mile Arizona Central out of Clarkdale, AZ.

ALBERTA- The Canadian National Railway suffered two derailments in the province of Alberta in the span of a few weeks, one of them prompting the evacuation of a nearby town.

On October 19th, a Canadian National train hauling oil and LPG derailed near the village of Gainsford, AB west of Edmonton at approximately 1 AM local time. Witnesses reported hearing a loud series of crashes before seeing a fireball shoot up into the sky. After evacuating nearby residents and shutting down the Yellowhead Highway which runs parallel to the CN line, emergency crews decided the safest option would be to allow the fire to burn itself out.

In the early morning hours of Nov 3rd, a second Canadian Nation freight train derailed outside the hamlet of Peers, AB- also west of Edmonton. That train was determined to be carrying lumber and sulphur Dioxide, a hazardous material but not as volatile as oil or LPG.

Geoff Hammill- Pocahontas Times

WEST VIRGINIA- At least one person was killed and 42 others were injured when a logging truck slammed into a Durbin and Greenbrier Valley excursion train at a grade crossing in the remote eastern part of the state.

According to the Randolph County Sheriff's Office, the driver of the log truck was the sole fatality of the collision and when they arrived on the scene, the gates and flashing lights on the crossing were functioning.

Randolph County Sheriff Mark Brady said two of the train’s passenger cars flipped on their sides after impact at a rail crossing with a mountain highway, the log truck was rendered a “total loss” and the truck driver was pronounced dead at the scene.

The truck driver was not immediately identified and news photographs from the scene at West Virginia’s Cheat Mountain showed large, heavy logs jumbled beside the two toppled train cars amid a chaotic scene of first responders aiding shaken passengers leaving the train.

Brady said the accident occurred at a train crossing on U.S. Route 250 at a bridge on the mountain. The overturned passenger cars lay beside the tracks, roped off with yellow crime scene tape as police, firefighters and others looked on.

Headquartered in Elkins, WV the West Virginia Central railroad operates more than 130 miles of former Western Maryland trackage in the eastern part of the state. Although it does intermittently haul freight, excursion trains such as the New Tygart Flyer, Durbin Rocket and Cheat Mountain Salamander have proven big draws for the line. Future plans for the line include re-opening a connection with the Cass Scenic Railway, a former logging railroad now a state park and tourist hauler as well as establishing a permanent home for the West Virginia Railroad Museum in Randolph County along the WVCR right-of-way.

EPA Announces "Listening Tour" For New Coal Regulations That Bypasses Most Coal Producing States

Coal loadout in Clymer, PA. Roy Blanchard photo

Following through on President Obama's June 2013 speech where he essentially promised to finish off the coal industry, the Environmental Protection Agency has announced a ten city 'listening tour' where they will hear public input on proposed new regulations for coal-fired power plants.

While the EPA's 'listening tour' includes New York, Boston, Washington DC and San Francisco, coal-producing states and states that rely primarily on energy from coal-fired power plants are mostly absent from the listening tour. While the listening tour includes Denver- the metropolitan area closest to Wyoming's Powder River Basin- cities such as Pittsburgh or Cleveland are conspicuously absent from the current schedule.

This has led to accusations by some lawmakers on Capitol Hill that the EPA's public input period amounts to a 'selective listening tour' where the agency would only hear input from audiences receptive to bankrupting the coal industry such as the Sierra Club's Beyond Coal campaign.

Representative Shelly Moore-Capito [R- WV2] and 17 other lawmakers have urged the EPA to include more states that would be heavily impacted by the proposed regulations while Kentucky GOP senator Mitch McConnell has contacted EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy to urge that the 'listening tour' includes a stop in Kentucky as well.

McConnell is running for re-election in 2014 and while the new EPA regulations may go over well with environmentalists and celebrities in New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco, they will likely be a contentious issue in coal producing states like Kentucky, Pennsylvania, Montana and West Virginia for House, US Senate and gubernatorial candidates.

Hundreds of Thousands Without Power As Death Toll From Hurricane Sandy Expected to Rise

Storm surge from Hurricane Sandy inundating the Inlet section of Atlantic City, NY as seen from above Dan Cuellar photo

From Labrador to South Carolina, much of the eastern seaboard is digging out from the havoc wrought by Hurricane Sandy's impact and local officials are starting to assess the damage as the death toll from the storm is expected to climb.

Hurricane Sandy- dubbed Frankenstorm after some meteorological projections put it on a collision course with another winter storm system moving in from the Midwest- made landfall just south of Atlantic City, NJ on October 30 before moving inland into Pennsylvania. Although it lost strength after moving inland, all five boroughs of New York City were hit particularly hard by the outer bands of Sandy.

Sandy's impact on the Big Apple was a double whammy of storm surges coming around the same time as high tide. From lower Manhattan to Queens, streets, tunnels and subway lines were flooded, stranding residents and forcing the NYPD and FDNY to respond to a number of calls by boat. In the Breezy Point section of Queens, as many as 110 homes were lost during a 5-alarm fire since the FDNY's trucks could not navigate the flooded streets to reach the homes until the tide receded.

State Island was the hardest hit out of all the boroughs in New York City. Portions of the island were under an evacuation order, but a number of residents chose to ride it out after Staten Island was left relatively unscathed by Sandy last year. According to officials 15 of the 39 confirmed fatalities in New York City from Sandy were on Staten Island.

Even amid the storm, several New York City hospitals took the unprecedented step of evacuating hundreds of patients as backup generators failed. Bellvue Hospital, which had received patients from elsewhere during the storm, began evacuating about 400 patients to Mt. Sinai. A New York City Health and Hospital Corporation official said that National Guardsmen activated due to Sandy instrumental in bringing in much needed fuel for the generator and assisting staff with transporting patients into waiting ambulances. Some of the patients had to be moved down 17 flights of stairs.

With some subway lines still inundated with saltwater, New York's MTA announced that it will resume limited subway service in Manhattan beginning Friday.

While power had been restored to some 4 million households throughout the region, at least 2.5 million are still without electricity in the New York metropolitan area. Across the Hudson in New Jersey, people have been lining up by the hundreds at gas stations to fill their cars or keep their generators running. Many gas stations are without power and remain closed while the ones that are open sell out quickly and it could be days before they're resupplied. This means that many in the slow-moving gas lines- some nearly two miles in length- will have waited in vain.

Amtrak announced that limited intercity service to Boston, Philadelphia, Baltimore and Washington DC will resume out of New York's Penn station beginning Friday.

Downtown Elkins, WV under a blanket of snow from the western portion of Hurricane Sandy. Higher elevations in the Appalachians received anywhere from 2 to 3 feet of snowfall. AP Photo/Vicki Smith

To the west, Sandy dumped several feet of snow in West Virginia and central Pennsylvania. At least 6 people were confirmed killed in West Virginia and an estimated 109,000 customers throughout the state were still without power on Thursday, prompting Gov. Tomblin to seek a federal disaster declaration. At least 36 state highways remained shut down on Thursday due to rising floodwaters, fallen tree limbs and heavy snowfall. The melting snow is also expected to saturate the Potomac watershed in the coming weeks.

Today's Train of Thought- Turning Over A New (River) Leaf, October 9, 2012,

Today's train of thought takes us to a fairly remote and isloated stretch of the Mountaineer State just as the leaves are beginning to turn color.

Founded at the turn of the last century, the tiny West Virginia village of Thurmond is nestled along the New River and the former Chesapeake & Ohio mainline from Virginia to the Midwest. The town in Fayette County reportedly wasn't accesable by road until the 1920s and to this day, a combined single lane road bridge and single track rail line that accomodated a C&O branchline to one of the coal mines to the west.

Like many other towns throughout Appalachia, Thurmond's fortunes rose and fell with the coal industry and two massive fires tore through downtown Thurmond in 1922 and 1930. Many merchants used the town's one and only road to set up shop elsewhere. By the mid 1950s, the Chesapeaske & Ohio had begun dieselization, phasing out the labor intensive steam locomotives that were serviced in Thrumond and facilities elsewhere along the C&O.

Perhaps the biggest developments in Thurmond since the C&O dieselized were the 1978 establishment of the New River National River by the National Parks Service and the 2005 sale of the CSX (former C&O) branchline between Thurmond and Mt. Hope, WV to shortline operator RJ Corman.

Although technically a 'ghost town', the 2010 census listed 5 full time residents and the isolated village is actually a flag stop on Amtrak's Chicago-Cincinnati-Washington D.C. Cardinal. The little C&O passenger depot is still used as visitor's center by the National Parks Service and occasionally for its intended purpose as the area is popular with campers, hikers, rail enthusiasts and boasts some of the best whitewhater rafting in the country.

Above, railpictures.net contributor JB Lockard caught CSX C44-9W #461 leading a coal drag past downtown Thurmond on October 9, 2011. In the background, one can see a new banner welcoming visitors to town and that the leaves are beginning to change in along the New River.

President Obama's Latest Victory in the War on Coal: Virginia-Based Coal Miner Alpha Natural Resources Announces It's Laying Off Nearly 10% Of Its Workforce

Norfolk Southern train seen backing up the Gilbert branch in Wharncliffe, WV to serve the Alpha Natural Resources Premium highwall mine in July 2008. JB Lockard photo

Bristol, VA-based Alpha Natural Resources [NYSE- ANR] announced on Tuesday that they would be shuttering at least eight mines and laying off approximately 1200 employees- nearly 10% of the company's workforce.

Alpha CEO Kevin Critchfield cited a lack of coal-fired power plants being built in the country and increased regulatory burdens from the EPA on both mining companies and utilities that use coal as contributing to the announced layoffs.

During a 2008 video interview with the San Francisco Chronicle, then-candidate Barack Obama promised to bankrupt anybody who built a coal-fired power plant in the United States. He also promised that energy prices would 'neccesarily skyrocket' under a cap and trade system that he was in favor of.

In June 2009, the Waxman-Markey Cap And Trade act passed the Democrat-controlled House of Representatives, but never made it to the Senate as both the House and Senate focused on getting 0bamacare passed. However, the White House was able to impose a number of restrictions on utilities and coal-fired power plants by way of regulatory fiat through using the Environmental Protection Agency as its enforcement arm.

The impending Alpha closures will affect at least eight mines in three different states- Virginia, Pennsylvania and West Virginia. Work at those facilities will continue until current contracts are fulfilled.

Spokesman Ted Pile says the affected West Virginia operations are the Alloy deep mine near Powellton, the Alloy surface mine near Boomer, the Premium highwall mine near Gilbert and the White Flame Surface Mine near Wharncliffe.

The Virginia mines are Guest Mountain deep mines No. 8 and No. 9 near Norton, and Twin Star Surface Mine near Hurley.

In Pennsylvania, Alpha will close its Dora deep mine in Jefferson County.

With the EPA regulations in place and no new coal-fired power plants being built, many companies have shifted from mining thermal coal typically burned at power plants to produce electricity to metallurgic coal which is in demand for steelmaking overseas.

In June of 2011, Alpha had acquired competitor Massey Energy in a deal worth $7.1 billion. Some of the facilities being closed down include former Massey properties.

Alpha isn't the only coal mining company that has been struggling in the current economic and regulatory environment. In July of this year, Patriot Coal had filed for bankruptcy protection thanks in part to a weaker economy, cancelled contracts as well as the same hostile regulatory environment. Out west, environmentalists have rallied and attempted to obstruct coal trains and export terminals from even passing through their cities- even filing nuisance lawsuits against railroads over diesel exhaust and coal dust.

Long Overdue Iron Horse Update- Pan-Am, MM&A Look To Oil By Rail; Fatal Wreck in Oklahoma; Centennial Steam to the South Rim of Grand Canyon; Susquehanna Gets Oakway Rebuilds; Ambitous WV Tourist Train Project Proposed

Montreal, Maine & Atlantic SD40-2 #758 leads a motley assortment of EMD and GE diesels east through Frontenac, Quebec with unit crude oil train 606-245 on June 8, 2012. The train is bound for the New Brunswick Southern railroad interchange at Brownville Jct, ME. Frank Jolin photo via railpictures.net

NEW BRUNSWICK- Canada's largest oil refinery is looking to bring in shipments of oil from the Bakken shale and that could spell more traffic for some New England railroads depending on what route is selected.

A 104-car test train traversed the 2400 miles between the Dakotas and St John, NB using a BNSF-CSX-Pan Am- New Brunswick Southern route in late May and could provide Maine an economic boost.

The first big shipment was made over the weekend. Each of the 104 cars carried roughly 700 barrels of oil. The train traveled through Chicago to Rotterdam Junction, N.Y., where it moved over Pan Am Railways track through southern and eastern Maine and connected with the New Brunswick Southern Railway for the trip to Saint John.

Pan Am has been improving its tracks and adding locomotives and crews, making it a player in the growing crude-oil competition, according to Hall.

Pan Am operates one of three possible rail routes that can get crude to Saint John. Canadian National Railroad has another, which skirts Aroostook County and stays north of Maine. A third goes through Jackman, Greenville and Brownville Junction to reach New Brunswick via the Montreal, Maine and Atlantic Railway.

"Irving's going to go with whoever does the best job at the best price," Hall said.

The prospect of steady oil shipments has led Montreal, Maine and Atlantic to announce that it will double the frequency of its service from three to six days a week between Montreal and Brownville Junction said Ed Burkhardt, the company's board chairman.

Price is driving Irving's thirst for Bakken oil, Burkhardt said. Irving's refinery, which has a capacity of 250,000 barrels a day, primarily receives its supply via tankers from Venezuela, the Persian Gulf and the North Sea. But overseas oil now is roughly $20 a barrel more expensive, so it's cost-effective to move some of the supply thousands of miles by rail.

"Rail can land oil at Saint John at a better price than by sea," Burkhardt said.

The most immediate factor that could limit business is the availability of tank cars, which are in great demand nationally, Burkhardt and others say. It takes roughly six days to go from North Dakota to New Brunswick, plus offloading time.

If rail delivery grows, it could help Maine's struggling freight railroads and the shippers that depend on them, said Chop Hardenbergh, editor of Atlantic Northeast Rails & Ports. That could help improve service to Maine's paper mills and attract new shippers, he said.

"It certainly helps our railroads and our overall economy," Hardenbergh said.

Enviromental groups raised ocbjections over the 100+ car trains traversing enviromentally sensetive areas of Maine- these concerns were punctuated when a Pan-Am local freight derailed in Bucksport, ME in late May sending a pair of tank cars into the Penobscot River before rupturing and leaking a synthetic latex used in papermaking.

Montreal, Maine & Atlantic began running test trains to the St John's refinery shortly after striking Canadian Pacific employees were ordered back to work, thus enabling MM&A to interchange with railroads west of St Jean, Quebec.

Both the Pan-Am and MM&A hand off the unit oil trains to the New Brunswick Southern- either at Brownville Jct or Northern Maine Jct. Irving's St John's refinery is also reportedly eyeing an all-Canadian National route between the Saskatchewan portion of the Bakken and New Brunswick. The New Brunswick Southern and Irving oil refinery are both owned by J.D. Irving, LTD- a privately held company.

OKLAHOMA- Three crew members were killed in the Oklahoma panhandle last weekend when two Union Pacific freight trains collided with each other east of Goodwell, OK. Investigators from the Oklahoma Highway Patrol and NTSB said they had pulled the badly burned bodies of John Hall, Dan Hall (no relation) and Brian Stone from the wreckage. A fourth crew member identified as Juan Zurita jumped from the locomotive prior to impact and escaped with minor injuries.

NTSB investigators are combing the scene and interviewing Zurita to attempt to piece together what had happened. The signals along the line and brakes on the locomotives involved were in working order and no cell phones were found at the crash site. Some experts have speculated that human error- not neccesarily on the part of the crew- could've played a part in the collision.

The NTSB will also be investigating the event recorders- basically a locomotive's black box- before issuing a preliminary report in two weeks.

Grand Canyon 2-8-2 #4960 leads Santa Fe 4-8-4 #3751 on a steam doubleheader to the South Rim of the Grand Canyon outside of Williams, AZ on May 15, 2012.

ARIZONA- The San Bernardino Railroad Historical Society's restored Santa Fe 4-8-8 Northern #3751 powered an excursion from Los Angeles to the South Rim of Arizona's Grand Canyon National Park in May to mark the centennial of statehood for Arizona.

The train departed Los Angeles on May 14th and after making good time over Cajon Pass and to the massive former Santa Fe yard and depot in Barstow, CA proceeded east on the transcontinental mainline to the Arizona & California interchange at Cadiz, where it ran into some problems in the form of a 15 MPH slow order for the journey between Cadiz and the ARZC facilities in Parker. Continuing east to the junction with the BNSF 'Peavine' line at Wickenburg, AZ the following day, the #3751 and its Amtrak diesel helper trudged along under another slow order, eventually making its way onto the Peavine Line north of Wickenburg and stopping to take on water at the siding in Congress, AZ.

Santa Fe #3751 seen heading southbound across the Hell's Canyon Trestle on BNSF's Phoenix-Williams, AZ 'Peavine' line at Drake AZ on the return trip to Los Angeles on May 18, 2012

The special arrived in Williams, AZ well after dark on the second day, but the following morning it left Williams on time while paired up with Grand Canyon's waste vegetable oil-burning 2-8-2 Mikado #4960.

Although used sparingly by Grand Canyon Railway's parent company Xanterra, the former Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Mikado has already made a couple of trips this year including a Valentine's Day special where visitors could ride to the South Rim for 1912 prices to celebrate Arizona's Centennial.

After a day off, the #3751 began its return trip to Los Angeles with the Grand Canyon Limited on May 18, giving riders a rare mileage trip down the former Santa Fe freight line in daylight hours. Keeping close to its schedule, the #3751 took on water in Congress, AZ once again and made better time over the ARZC line between Wickenburg and Parker, AZ as the speed limit had been raised to 35 MPH for the return trip. The following day, the #3751 made much better time to the BNSF Transcon junction at Cadiz and had a relatively easy journey back to Los Angeles via Barstow and Cajon Pass.

Newly arrived Susquehanna SD60 #3810 seen leading westbound Little Ferry, NJ to Binghamton NY symbol freight SU-99 through Bogota, NJ on June 22nd, 2012. Brandon Kaback photo via rrpicturesarchives

NEW YORK, SUSQUEHANNA & WESTERN- The Susquehanna has recently taken delivery of six former Oakway SD60 that were extensively rebuilt by Paducah, KY-based VMV Paducahbuilt. In addition to major overhauls of the trucks, fans, wheels and prime movers, Eastern Railroad News is reporting that the units will be equipped with GPS tracking and a new AESS Fuel Management system. The units were built in the late 1980s for Oakway leasing and spent much of their service lives in freight service on the Burlington Northern and BNSF.

Although there were earlier reports circulating that one of the six EMDs would be adorned with a maroon and silver paint scheme reminiscent of the colors on Susquehanna's early ALCo diesels, it apprears as though all six will be delivered in the NYSW's contemporary 'Yellowjacket' scheme. Per Susquehanna tradition, the units will be assigned road numbers 3800 to 3810- even numbers only.

Previously, the Susquehanna had been utilizing older SD40T-2s and unrebuilt SD45s and a fleet of leased blue CEFX SD40M-2s to handle the heavier road freights between Little Ferry, NJ and Binghamton, NY. The NYSW is also reportedly evaluating four-axle gensets for local and yard service.

The Durbin & Greenbrier Valley's former Moore & Keppel 2-truck Climax is seen leading a mixed train at Durbin, WV in May 2010. The line is currently isolated from other railroads, but a plan is in place to reconnect both the Durbin & Greenbrier and Cass Scenic with the rest of the nation's rail network via the West Virginia Central. Kevin Madore photo via Railpictures.net

WEST VIRGINIA- Randolph County could soon become the lynchpin of an ambitious 90-mile tourist and heritage railroad circuit in the eastern part of the Mountaineer State. The county seat of Elkins is already home to the West Virginia Central's New Tygart Flyer and Cheat Mountain Salamander excursion trains. In 1997, the WVCR was selected by the state of West Virginia to operate 140 miles of former Western Maryland lines that CSX was looking to abandon. Besides a number of excursion services, the WVCR also hauls scrap metal and lumber for shippers in some of the isolated communities along the line. Prior to 1985, the south end of the line connected with the Cass Scenic Railroad south of Durbin, WV but the line was washed out in a flood 27 years ago.

The WVCR is also afilliated with the Durbin Rocket in nearby Pocohontas County. The Rocket is on an isolated 5-mile stretch of former Cheseapeke & Ohio line and offers short excursions and weekend stays in the wilderness in a caboose.

However, according to recent reports in the Elkins Inter-Mountain a proposal is being put before local Chambers of Commerce to restore WVCR's connections with both the Durbin Rocket and the Cass Scenic by rebuilding bridges and re-laying rail that would be ripped up from the dormant southwesternmost portion of the WVCR line between Laurel Bank and Bergoo, WV.

The project would add 60 miles of new rail trail, creating the Highland Adventure of Mountain & Rail, a 90-mile loop connecting Canaan Valley in Tucker County with The Greenbrier Resort, and Belington with Cass Scenic Railroad in Pocohantas County, Bergoo in Webster County and Snowshoe Resort.

"The goal is to have the trains load and unload in Belington," said Smith.

There could be economic benefits to all counties involved, combining recreation with transportation. Those with canoes, for instance, could go canoeing at one location, board a train, and canoe at another location in the same day.

"We think (the rail project) will open many new opportunities because of this plan," said Byrne.

The Highland Adventure of Mountain & Rail could result in the expansion of existing recreational opportunities in the area as well as provide an opportunity for others.

The project would cost about $20 million and is expected to attract 150,000 tourists in its first year, bringing a $50 million economic impact. In 2011, Smith's railroad had 35,998 passengers.

"With the new rail system, even West Virginia residents will have more places to go," said Byrne.

Many of the trains will travel through scenic areas of the state and provide the opportunity for many to merge their train rides with other recreational activities such as rafting, camping, hiking and more.

The plan coincides with the announcement of the West Virginia Railroad Museum selecting the nearby town of Beverly, WV for its new permanent home. The WVRM had originally planned to set up shop in Elkins, but was unable to meet planning requirements because the town's former Western Maryland depot wasn't big enough and the yard facilities couldn't accomodate the Museum's 90ft turntable. The Beverly site also features a historic former WM depot and is less than 10 miles away from Elkins.

Once moved into their permanent home, the West Virginia Railroad Museum plans on restoring some of their rolling stock to working order, including a pair of former West Virginia Northern 2-8-0 Consolidations, a 1943-built former US Army Baldwin diesel and a 1941-built Heisler geared steam locomotive- similar to the Durbin & Greenbrier's geared climax steam locomotive. This could provide an opportunity for the Museum's motive power to haul excursions on any of the three railways.

Coos Bay Rail Link leads a Eugene-bound train across a trestle at Hauser, OR on 2/23/12. The recently-reopened rail line has been mentioned as hosting unit coal trains bound for export from a facility to be built at the port of Coos Bay. Shane Gill photo via rrpicturearchives.net.

OREGON- In remarks at a 'green' energy conference at Portland, Oregon's Democrat governor has called for a 'sweeping review' by state and federal agencies of a number or proposed coal export terminals located throughout the Pacific northwest.

Kitzhaber, a Democrat with strong ties to environmental groups that oppose coal export, requested the comprehensive review in a letter Wednesday to the Bureau of Land Management and the Army Corps of Engineers today. He also called for the review in a broader speech on "clean energy" today before the Future Energy Conference in Portland.

“We’re rushing to this huge infrastructure investment without a full national discussion,” Kitzhaber said after the speech. “I think we deserve to have a full debate on this.”

Kitzhaber didn't take a stand for or against exporting coal, which supporters say would increase rural jobs and tax revenues.

The proposed coal terminals and upgrading the rail lines that would serve them would create much-needed jobs for rural Oregon- the statewide unemployment rate currently is 8.4%. Kitzhaber likely ordered the review to make certain the coal terminal proposals would die a slow death via red tape and regulations rather go on the record as nixing the projects outright. Rural Oregon's economy has been struggling decades before the 2008 subprime lending meltdown triggered a global recession- with their timber industry coming under increasingly strict regulations due to pressure from environmentalists.

The coal would come from the Powder River basin and be shipped via Union Pacific or BNSF to one of the proposed terminals. With half the sites under consideration, the coal trains would have to be handed off to another railway to reach the port. Among the possible terminal locations are Bellingham, Longview and Grays Harbor in Washington state and Coos Bay, Port Westward and Morrow in Oregon. Located much further inland along the Columbia river, Morrow is a realtively short distance away from Union Pacific's yard in Hinkle, OR while any trains using Coos Bay would utilize the newly re-opened rail line between Coos Bay and Eugene. Just west of Portland, Port Westward would utilize Genesee & Wyoming's Wilamette & Pacific railroad while the Grays Harbor proposal would utilize Rail America's Puget Sound & Pacific.

The proposals have met with fierce opposition from environmentalists who are now claiming that coal trains can cause cancer or something. I shit you not- the very same environmentalists who hadn't said a word about train loads of trash being taken from metropolitan areas in the Pacific northwest and being dumped in eastern Oregon and Washington for the last 25 years are now warning the public on the health risks of dust blowing off from passing coal trains.

Meanwhile, Coos Bay Rail Link has obtained two GP38 locomotives to handle an expected increase in traffic as track rehabilitation slated for this summer will lead to increased train speeds between Coquille, OR and Eugene. A number of local companies were awarded contracts for weed abatement, bridge repair and tie replacement along the 134-mile route.

Democrats Skipping National Convention, Seek to Distance Themselves From Obama

At least a half dozen elected Democrats announced that they will not be attending the party's upcoming national Convention at Charlotte, NC in September.

The latest no-shows who made the announcement came from two incumbent Representatives from Upstate New York who are trying to get re-elected in competitive districts.

Congressman Bill Owens [D- NY23] and Kathy Hochul [D- NY26] announced separately that they would be spending time in their respective districts and with their campaigns in lieu of attending the party's gathering in the Tarheel state. The two upstate Democrats' announced their decision a day after Pennsylvania Congressman [D- PA12] told the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review that he would be campaigning in lieu of attending the DNC's convention this September. The April Keystone state primary pitted two Democrat incumbents- Critz and Jason Altmire [D- PA4]- against each other to vie for the newly-redrawn congressional district. Critz fended off the challenge from Altmire by winning they newly-formed district's primary by a 52% margin.

Critz, Owens and Hochul each came into office during closely contested special elections since 2009 and all three of them are facing spirited challenges from Republican opposition in their districts, leading many to observe that they're distancing themselves from President Obama for their 2012 campaigns.

Meanwhile, the Democrat delegation from the Mountain State will be under-represented as Democrat governor Earl Ray Tomblin, US Senator Joe Manchin and Congressman Nick Rahall [D- WV3] all announced they would be skipping out on the DNC convention. The three West Virginia Democrats have criticized Obama's energy policies as effectively bankrupting the coal-producing state. Under the Obama Administration, the EPA has ordered the shutdown of dozens of coal-fired power plants and during the closing days of the 2008 Presidential campaign, Obama had promised that energy prices would skyrocket while he would bankrupt the coal industry.

Critz, Manchin, Tomblin and Rahall all represent coal producing regions while Owens and Hochul's districts could benefit from natural gas exploration on the Marcellus shale should New York state ever lift a moratorium on hyrdo-fracking. Despite being abundant and domestically available energy sources, President Obama, the Democrats and their environmentalist backers have demonstrated an inherent antipathy towards fossil fuels- including coal and natural gas- as a cornerstone of their energy policy.

In late May, prominent Democrats such as former Pennsylvania governor Ed Rendell, Newark, NJ mayor Corey Booker and Massachusetts governor DeVal Patrick were rebuked by the White House after they were critical of the Obama campaign's attacks on private equity firm Bain Capital as a means of going after presumptive GOP nominee Mitt Romney.

The convention venue itself is a point of contention among some Democrats. Although North Carolina is a right-to-work state, local officials agreed to outsource some labor contracts to out-of-state union shops. Last month, Tarheel state voters approved an amendment to the state's constitution that would define marriage as between a man and a woman. The move draw ire from the gay community, who had unsuccessfully petitioned the DNC to change venues.

Today's Train of Thought- The Great Train Raid, Feb 24th 2012

Today's train of thought brings us back to the historically significant West Virginia burgh of Harper's Ferry. Among other occurances, the town is perhaps best known for abolitionist John Brown's raid on the US Army's strategically pivotal armory two years before the Civil War.

The town itself changed hands between the Union and Confederacy a number of times due to the importance of both the arsenal and the Baltimore & Ohio line through town that linked Washington D.C. and Baltimore with Pittsburgh, which was already becoming a key industrial center. The Union, obviously, wanted to move materiel and troops along the Mason-Dixon line while the South wanted to sabotage and cut off those supply lines as often as possible.

While the B&O line through town would eventually continue all the way west to Chicago, another line interstected at the Potomac River bridge seperating West Virginia from Maryland and headed south to Winchester, VA. This line was built as the Winchester & Potomac in the late 1830s. During the Civil War, the Winchester & Potomac fell under Confederate control and was used to ferry rebel troops and supplies to try and retake Harper's Ferry and stage raids on the B&O line. In 1861, Confederate Col Stonewall Jackson used the W&PRR to stage the Great Train Raid, the largest seizure of intact equipment and rolling stock by the Confederacy during the war. The captured equipment was moved by Confederate forces to Winchester, VA over the Winchester & Potomac.

After the Civil War, the line changed owners a number of times before falling into the B&O fold. Today, the former Winchester & Potomac is now part of the CSX's Shenedoah subdivision linking Harper's Ferry and the CSX Cumberland Subdivision with Norfolk Southern's former Southern line at Strasburg.

While not as active as the Cumberland/Sand Patch line linking Baltimore and the Capital region with Pittsbugh and points west, the Shenedoah subdivision still sees some local traffic. Here, railpictures.net contributor trainmasterrob catches CSX GP40-2 #6295 trundling across the wooden trestle that traverses the heart of historic Harper's Ferry with CSX train Q751. The train, which also goes by the name 'Rock Runner' is the first train across the trestle since the snow has fallen on the final day of 2009 and is passing under the shadow of the steeple of St Peter's Catholic Church on the hill.

Feds Arrest Moroccan Citizen For Allegdly Attempt to Carry Out Suicide Bombing at US Capitol

Federal officers arrested a 29 year old man reportedly on his way to the Capitol building in Washington D.C. to carry out a suicide bombing on Friday afternoon in an apparent 'lone-wolf' style attempt.

The federal criminal complaint against the suspect identifies him as Amine El Khalifi,

He was nabbed following a lengthy investigation by the FBI, initiated after he allegedly expressed interest in conducting an attack. Court documents say he came onto the radar screen in early December after he told an undercover agent about an earlier plan to bomb a northern Virginia building.

Khalifi was charged Friday in U.S. District Court in northern Virginia with attempting to use a weapon of mass destruction.

The suspect allegedly weighed hitting various targets ranging from a military installation to synagogues to a Washington restaurant before settling on the Capitol.

The man thought undercover FBI agents assisting him in his plot were associates of Al Qaeda.He purchased bomb materials including jackets, nails and glue in preparation for an attack

When he was arrested Friday in Washington, he was carrying with him a vest that he had been led to believe was packed with explosives, but the material inside was not actually dangerous,

A short time earlier, Khalifi had been praying at a mosque in the Washington area. His destination was Capitol Hill.

The public was never in danger, as he had been under constant surveillance for some time, officials said. The FBI provided the suspect with a disabled gun during their ongoing operation

The U.S. Capitol Police, in a statement that confirmed the arrest but provided few details, said the suspect had been "closely and carefully monitored."

A senior source involved with law enforcement at the Capitol also told Fox News the investigation was "all very controlled." The source said the U.S. Capitol Police was involved with the FBI and other agencies in tracking the suspect "not more than a year."

Khalifi had reportedly set off explosives in a remote quarry in West Virginia while accompanied undercover agents as part a test before carrying out his attack.

Khalifi was been staying in the country illegally after overstaying a tourist visa that he entered the USA on in 1999. While living in northern Virginia, the Moroccan had a run-ins with his Arlington landlord who had called local police.

Frank Dynda said Friday that a woman who leased an apartment in his Arlington building apparently married Amine El Khalifi and then moved out. He says when Dynda told El Khalifi to leave, he said he had a right to stay and threatened to beat Dynda up.

Dynda says he thought El Khalifi was making bombs, but police told him to leave the man alone. Dynda had El Khalifi evicted in 2010.

Agents from FBI counterterrorism task force and Arlington County police officers searched a residence in Douglas Park, VA in relation to Khalidi's arrest.

Today's Train of Thought- Harper's Ferry PTA, April 20, 2011

With the 150th anniversary of the Civil War taking place this month, today's train of thought takes us to one of the most pivotal towns throughout the whole conflict- Harper's Ferry, WV.

Located at the confluence of the Potomac and Shenandoah Rivers, by the mid 19th century the town was home to a US Military Armory and was linked to the rest of the country by the Chesapeake & Ohio Canal and the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad. In 1859, the Armory was targeted by abolitionist John Brown and 21 men (mostly escaped or freed slaves) in a nighttime raid that killed 11. Brown and most of his surviving men were captured and the fiery abolitionist was sentenced to hang in December 1859. As much as the first shots fired at Ft Sumter marked the official start of the Civil War, Brown's uprising in what was then a Virginia town and execution was thought to be the catalyst for the conflict.

The town of Harper's Ferry itself changed hands no less than 8 times during the Civil War, with retreating Union forces destroying the Armory to prevent it from falling into Confederate hands. The Union then annexed the two counties that make up the eastern panhandle of West Virginia from Virginia (West Virgina was the only state to secede from the Confederacy) in 1863. With the railroads and canals, Harper's Ferry was a sought after prize for Robert E. Lee who could not resupply his Army on their way to Gettysburg.

After the war, the B&O line remained, with the line through Harper's Ferry hosting trains between Baltimore and Washington D.C. to the east and Pittsburgh, Cincinnati, Chicago, St Louis and the coal fields of West Virginia to the west. In the 1970s, the line was merged into the Chessie System and in the late 1980s, the line became part of the CSX system. The Harper's Ferry Train station is still open and hosts both east and westbound versions of Amtrak's Washington D.C.-Chicago Capitol Limited but is also the westernmost station stop for the MARC commuter rail.

Here, railpictures.net contributor trainmasterrob caught CSX SD50 #8637 leading Cumberland, MD-bound general freight Q414 crossing the Potomac and heading into Harper's Ferry from Maryland Heights on the last day of 2007. The portal of the tunnel is on the Maryland side of the river and was part of a realignment dating back to 1931, which is fairly recent given the West Virginia town's eventful past.

Last Living American WWI Veteran Passes Away at 110

(Martinsburg Journal News.net)

Frank Woodruff Buckles, the last surviving American World War I Veteran, passed away at his Charles Town, WV farmhouse on Monday at the age of 110.

Buckles was 16 when he enlisted, lying about his age to an Army recruiter in Oklahoma in 1917 and worked as an ambulance driver until the armistice. After the war, he was assigned to a POW escort company that was tasked with repatriating prisoners with their home country.

At the outbreak of WWII, Buckles was working as a civilian with a shipping company in the Philippines when he was captured as a prisoner of war and spent three years at the Los Banos POW camp on the island of Luzon. Interestingly, last week marked the 66th anniversary of the US Raid on Los Banos.

After the war, Buckles married and moved to a farm in West Virginia. He continued to work on the farm until he turned 106. Buckles also served as honorary chairman of the National WWI Memorial foundation.

Rest in Peace and thank you for your service, Mr. Buckles.

Today's Train of Thought- Yellow Streak, Jan 31 2011

Today's train of thought brings us a little splash of color in a wintry Appalachia, as railpictures.net contributor J.B. Lockard catches armour yellow Union Pacific C40-8 leading a Norfolk Southern SD50 still in Conrail paint. The visitor from out west is in charge of Norfolk Southern's Middletown, OH to Williamson, WV coal empties train 81Z on Pocahontas Division at Glen Alum, WV on December 27, 2010.

The leased yellow Dash 8s from out west had been making a number of appearances on Norfolk Southern's lines across the Mountaineer State, breaking up the monochrome of NS's own black and white 'Thoroughbred' paint scheme.

Sports Pumpkin Chowdah Recap- Huff & Puff and Blow the Rangers House Down; Pats Don Old School Jersey, KO Old School QB; B's Veto Sens; BC Halts Skid

NFL: Brett Favre took it on the chin- literally- in Sunday's game at Foxboro. While engineering a drive inside New England's 10 yard line midway through the 4th quarter, the Vikings QB was levelled by DT Myron Pryor and had to leave the game with a laceration on his chin.

Coming into this week's matchup, there was some doubt whether or not we would even get the Tom Brady/Brett Favre matchup, with the possibility that Brett Favre would miss his 292nd consecutive career start due to multiple fractures in his ankle. Prior to that the sub-plot for Sunday's game was supposed to be Randy Moss' return to Foxboro for the first time since he was traded earlier in the year, but Moss was a conspicuous non-factor with only one reception for 8 yards on the day.

After a scoreless first quarter, Minnesota took the lead to start off the 2nd quarter with a drive that started out on their own 24 and was capped with a one yard TD run from RB Adrian Peterson. The Pats responded by putting together a drive from their own 25 that went into the Viking's red zone thanks to long completions from Brady to Deion Branch and Brandon Tate, culminating when RB Danny Woodhead took a direct snap from the Vikings 3 into the end zone.

Although Minnesota moved the ball around effectively with Favre at QB, twice they made it inside the Pat's red zone and were shut out, the most pivotal stop coming on a 4th and goal with a minute left in the 1st half, when Adrian Peterson was stuffed at the 1-yard line to keep the game tied at 7-7- heading into the half.

The Pat's D also factored into keeping Minnesota Vikings out of the end zone on their first posession on the second half, with the Vikings getting as far as New England's own 5 before settling for a chip shot field goal from the 24 yard line.

New England came right back with a drive that quickly put them up thanks to a completion from Brady to Brandon Tate good for 65 yards to make it a 14-10 contest.

With five minutes to go in the 3rd quarter and Minnesota getting the ball mid-field, Brett Favre was intercepted by Devon McCourty, who ran it back to the Vikings 37 yard line. The ensuing Pats posession was almost literally all Ben Jarvus Green-Ellis. Aside from a 10 yard completion to Danny Woodhead, the ball was handed off to the RB for 3 carries for 27 yards, including his 13 yard TD run to put New England up 21-10.

Starting at their own 20, Favre put together a drive (including a 30 yard pickup by WR Percy Harvin) that got them inside the New England 10 before Pryor's hit knocked him out, with Tavaris Jackson coming in at QB. The next play was a quick pass to Nafahu Tahi for the touchdown, followed by a 2 point conversion to Harvin to close the gap at 18-21.

New England began their following posession at their own 20 yard line and strung together a lengthy, time-consuming drive that included converting in a 3rd & 12 thanks to a 16 yard pickup by Danny Woodhead and yet another Ben Jarvus Green-Ellis TD run to put the Pats up by 28-18 marign inside the 2-minute warning.

That would be the final from Foxboro as the Pats went to 6-1. With the Jets 9-0 loss to Green Bay at the Meadowlands earlier in the day, New England takes sole posession of first place in the AFC east. The cherry on top of that is with Pittsburgh's 20-10 loss to New Orlenas on Sunday night, the Patriots have the best overall record in the NFL.

Next week will have the Pats travel to Cleveland for a 1PM ET/10AM Pt kickoff against the Browns (who lest we forget, absolutely manhandled New Orleans a few weeks back). Then comes a particularly difficult stretch where New England will be going up against the Steelers and Colts.

UPDATE: Well, that didn't last long. On Monday, the Vikings announced that WR Randy Moss would be waived after an odd, one-man postgame press conference after the game.


WORLD SERIES: The series has moved to Arlington, TX and on Saturday night, the Rangers avoided the sweep thanks to Mitch Moreland, who drove in 3 of Texas' 4 runs with a 3-run shot in the bottom of the second inning. Colby Lewis lasted a good 7 and ⅔ innings in a must-win scenario, giving up two earned runs on 5 hits while striking out six. It got a little tense for awhile, but Darren O'Day and Neftali Feliz managed to close out the game for the Ranger's 4-2 win, the first-ever World Series game won in the state of Texas.

For Sunday night, both the Giants and the Rangers had their young starters going- Tommy Hunter versus Madison Bumgardner. Hunter gave up a 2-run shot to Giants DH Aubrey Huff in the top of the third to make it a 2-0 game. Outfielder Andres Torres would drive in another run in the top of the 7th off of Darren Oliver and catcher Buster Posey had a solo shot off of Darren O'Day to make it a 4-0 San Francisco advantage. Bumgardner went 8 scoreless innings, giving up 3 hits, 2 walks and striking out six while Londonderry, NH's own Brian Wilson had a 1-2-3 bottom of the 9th to close out 4-0 win, putting San Francisco up 3 games to 1 in the World Series.

Game 5 is set to take place tonight at Arlington, with the game 1 rematch of Cliff Lee and Tim Linecum at 7:57PM ET, 4:57ET.


NHL: The Bruins took their first trip north of the border this season to take on the Ottawa Senators Saturday night. As it turned out, David Krejci would get the only tally (unassisted, no less!) Boston needed with 4 ½ minutes left in the first. Still, Tyler Seguin and Milan Lucic gave Boston some insurance in the 2nd period with seperate goals and Jordan Caron put Boston up 4-0.

[OK- who was ready to write off Tim Thomas last season? Don't you feel kind of dumb now?- NANESB!]

Tim Thomas stopped all 29 shots faced and now has a 6-0-0 record, in net for all six of Boston's wins. The Bruins 6-2-0 record and will travel next to the HSBC Arena to take on the Buffalo Sabres on Wednesday night.



NCAA FOOTBALL: How about that? The BC Eagles are off the schnide after downing the Clemson Tigers at Chestnut Hill on Saturday! This snaps the Eagle's longest losing streak since 1998. Saturday's game was by no means a track meet, with Clemson taking the early 7-0 lead. The Eagles replied with a Nate Freese field goal, which the Tigers responded to with one of their own to take a 10-3 lead to close out the first quarter. The Eagles got another field goal in the 2nd and then scored their only TD on a 36 yard play to RB Montel Harris with the Eagles holding on to a 16-10 heading into halftime.

There was no scoring in the 2nd half, with the Eagle's defense stifling the Tigers and getting the ball back thanks to missed field goals, interceptions and tunrovers on downs. After some close losses to Maryland and Florida state, BC beats Clemson by a final of 16-10. Montel Harris had 1 reception for 142 yards and BC's only TD.

Next week, the Eagles will travel to Winston-Salem, NC to take on the struggling Wake Forest Demon Deacons, who currently have a record of 2-6.

BIG EAST: Just like on Chestnut Hill, 16 points was all it took for UConn to break their losing streak against a favored opponent on a Friday Night game against the West Virginia Mountaineers.

The overtime win heading into the weekend was aided in large part by no less than 7 Mountaineer turnovers- four of them recovered by UConn. The most damning one for West Virginia came in the OT, which by rule gave the Huskies posession on WV's own 25 yard line. After being kept out of the end zone by the Mountaineer defense, UConn kicker Dave Teggart booted the game winning FG from the West Virginia 27 yard line for the 16-13 win.

The win halts the Huskies 2-game losing streak and gives UConna 4-4 record for their upcoming Veteran's Day game against Pitt at E. Hartford, CT.

NBA: Despite his non-compliant headband, Rajon Rondo had a career night against the NY Knicks with a triple double and 24 assists on Friday night. Paul Pierce wasn't too shabby either, with 25 points and 14 rebounds of his own during the C's 105-101 win against New York.

[Should I be Concerned that this was such a close game against what's normally considered an awful team? Has New York improved that much? Or is this something that can be attributed to early season rustiness on the part of both teams?- NANESB!]

The C's will next travel to the Palace at Auburn Hills, MI to take on the Detroit Pistons on Tuesday night.

Today's Train of Thought- Peak-a-Boo! October 26, 2010

I already mentioned that New England doesn't necessarily have the monopoly on fall colors, right? True enough, the foliage in Michigan's upper peninsula or upstate New York's Adirondack and Hudson Valley regions explode into similarly brilliant displays of reds, oranges and yellows- all making for impressive photographic backdrops.

Although many areas in the Southeast or mid-Atlantic can be hit or miss, West Virginia has no shortage of autumn foliage. Railpictures.net contributor Chase Gunnoe reported that a particularly mild summer in 2009 resulted in noticeably brighter oranges and yellows. Here, he snapped CSX (ex-Conrail) GP38-2 #2751 heading south through Ben's Run, WV in October 2009 with a local. The local train originated at Brooklyn Jct. in New Martinsville, WV and is heading south parallel to the Ohio River and WV Route 2 en route to switching some of the industries along the former B&O Ohio River Subdivision.

West Virginia Governor Appoints Chief Counsel to Vacant Senate Seat.

Not surprisingly, it's a Democrat.

Specifically, Gov. Manchin's former Chief Counsel Carte Goodwin- who's almost one-third the age of the late Robert Byrd.

He would likely hold the seat until an election is held in November for a more permanent replacement. Manchin has said he is likely to run.

Goodwin hails from a prominent family in West Virginia legal and political circles. His is the third generation of Goodwins to practice law in West Virginia, according to the website of his family’s law firm, Goodwin & Goodwin. His father chaired West Virginia University’s Board of Governors, one uncle is a federal judge, and a cousin is the U.S. Attorney for the state’s southern federal court district, according to the AP.

After working on Manchin’s 2004 campaign for governor, he became his general counsel in 2005, before returning to his family’s law firm in 2009 Manchin also turned to Goodwin last year to head a review of the state’s judiciary after conflict-of-interest scandals and concerns from business groups, according to the AP. As general counsel, he played a key role in drafting mine rescue and safety measures after deadly accidents in West Virginia coal mines in 2006.

“I know he’s going to make us all proud,’’ Governor Manchin said at a packed news conference at the state Capitol. “I know that West Virginia is better off because he’s passed this way.’’

And more importantly, he knows Goodwin will step down once Manchin's term as governor is up and he runs for Senate.

UPDATE- Carte Goodwin indicated that he would likely vote against Cap & Trade as it's currently written in a Charleston, WV Press conference on Friday.

“From what I’ve seen, they are simply not right for West Virginia,” Goodwin said at a press conference after Gov. Joe Manchin announced his appointment. “I will not support any piece of legislation that threatens any West Virginia job or any West Virginia family.”

Now-senior Senator John Rockefeller (D-WV) has also come out more aggressively against the bill that was passed in the US House last year. Voting for complex and punitive taxes on coal makes very little sense in one of the world's most productive coal mining reigons, regardless of political affiliation.

Having said that, I'll have to take both Goodwin and Rockefeller's opposition to Cap & Trade with a grain of salt. Remember that back in March, Bart Stupak was a 'pro-life' Democrat who basically sold out the unborn in exchange for a worthless piece of paper signed by President Obama.

UPDATE #2- Well well well....looks like the recently departed nonegenarian Klansman Byrd was getting ready to decimate West Virginia's economy to make nice with the Chicago-San Francisco axis of the Democrat party:

Byrd had been sending strong signals over the last year that he could vote for a bill that places a price on greenhouse gas emissions. "West Virginians can choose to anticipate change and adapt to it, or resist and be overrun by it,” he said last December.

Anybody else wanna savor the irony of a 92 year old Kleagle lecturing others on the merits of 'change'?

Crazy Wingnut Extremist Tea Baggers: "Feds Put Southern Louisiana Out of Work" and "People Are Dying Down Here!"

And by 'right wing extremist Tea Baggers', I mean former Clinton political strategist James Carville.

Not to be out done in the crazy wingnut department is Ravi Sangisetty, a Congressional candidate for Louisiana's third district with a scathing rebuke of the Obama administration's moratorium on offshore drilling.

HOUMA, La. — Ravi Sangisetty, candidate for U.S. Congress in the Louisiana Third District, said the federal government has issued a death sentence to South Louisiana’s economy.

“Last night the President went on TV and said, ‘If something isn’t working, we want to hear about it,’” Sangisetty said. “Well, because of the federal government and BP, the list of things that aren’t working is pretty long. The federal government’s moratorium means the oil rigs aren’t working; failure to regulate BP means now the Gulf is full of oil; the oil means the fishermen aren’t working; that means our restaurants and tourism industries aren’t working. Mr. President, the federal government stopped South Louisiana from working.”

Sangisetty said that safety must be ensured on the deepwater rigs in a matter of days, not months. He also said that domestic oil is key to our national economy and security.

“The President chastised America for sending a billion dollars a day to foreign countries for their oil,” Sangisetty said. “Domestic oil is a perfect way to counter that, however our ability to drill our own oil has been crippled because Washington is broken. We have a serious problem down here. We need a solution for coastal economy that puts South Louisiana back to work now.”

Did I mention that Sangisetty is a Democrat? And that I agree with him? For some reason, Sangisetty is not running on the 'Obama-is-responding-to-the-BP-oil-spill-just-fine-you-stupid-coonasses' platform in 2010 like I suspect the DNC would like him to.

Meanwhile, in West Virginia's long-serving and ethically challenged congressman Alan Mollohan lost a challenge in West Virginia's 1st congressional district primary race to Mike Oliverio back in May. Oliverio- like anybody with some functioning synapses- claims he is against Obamacare, Cap & Trade and the increase of government spending and is none too fond of Nancy Pelosi either.

Oh yes- did I mention he's a democrat, too?

Besides Republican challenger David McKinley, Oliverio faces opposition from 94 year old Ken Hechler, an influential Mountaineer state Democrat who vowed to establish a Political Action Committee with the sole purpose of defeating Oliverio [because nothing says 'bold and refreshing and ready for change' like another 90-something West Virginia democrat!- NANESB!].

West Virginia's 1st district includes Wheeling and the Northern panhandle along with Morgantown and the university of West Virginia- which is coal country and also sits atop the Marcellus Shale natural gas deposits.

Somehow I get the feeling that neither Sangisetty or Oliverio (or their respective districts) would fully embrace a campaign appearance by Obama or Pelosi.

West Virginia Update: Gov. Manchin Won't Hold Special Election for Byrd Replacement Until 2012

Whoever West Virginia Governor Joe Manchin appoints to fill the late Senator Byrd's now-vacant seat may be serving until November of 2012. As it stands, on Nov 6th 2012, West Virginians will take to the polls and vote twice for the same seat- once to replace Manchin's appointment between November 2012 and January 2013 (what would've been the end of Byrd's term) and once to vote for who will fill the senate seat from 2013 onwards [This is similar to what NY Governor Paterson arranged for New York's 29th Congressional district, only minus the interim appointee and it takes place over the course of 2 and a half years versus six months- NANESB!].

The decision has puzzled and infuriated some state officials.

State Sen. Jeff Kessler, D-Marshall, chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee and a 2012 candidate for governor, called the current process of having an appointment and then a dual election in 2012 both "bizarre and absurd."

"I can't imagine that was the legislative intent when they passed this statute years ago. I think this needs to be addressed," Kessler said.

"Generally, I would favor a broader reading of the law that would let the people choose a longer-term representative. But this is entirely in the governor's hands. Only he can call us into special session."

West Virginia already held its primaries in May this year and Gov. Manchin (a Democrat) may be reluctant to call for a sepcial election in a year when Democrats are expected to lose seats in both the House and Senate.

Some of the names being mentioned as Manchin's appointee include Secretary of State Natalie Tennant, West Virginia DNC Chair and one-time Manchin aide Larry Puccio, former State Democrat Party Chair Nick Caset and State Senate President Early Ray Tomblin. While rumors have been circulating that Manchin himself is interested in Byrd's seat, it is highly unlikely that he would immediately name himself as replacement. The more likely scenario is that he would serve out the rest of his term as governor (which ends in 2012) and campaign for the Senate seat his final year in the Governor's Mansion.

BREAKING: Senator Robert Byrd Passes Away at Age 92

Sen. Robert Byrd (D-WV), the current longest-serving US Senator passed away on Monday at the age of 92. Byrd had served in the US Senate since 1959 and prior to that was elected to the US House of Representatives in 1952 and was the only surviving Senator to vote for statehood for Alaska and Hawaii.

Born in North Carolina in 1917, Byrd's mother was killed in the Spanish flu pandemic of 1918 and was raised by his aunt and uncle in Southern West Virginia. Byrd also joined up with the Ku Klux Klan in the 1940s, where he held the title of Kleagle and Exalted Cyclops.

I shall never fight in the armed forces with a Negro by my side… Rather I should die a thousand times, and see Old Glory trampled in the dirt never to rise again, than to see this beloved land of ours become degraded by race mongrels, a throwback to the blackest specimen from the wilds.

—Byrd in Letter to pro-segregationist Mississippi Sen. Theo Bilbo in 1944

I couldn't help but notice that there was no mention of Byrd's military service in his biographies or obituaries. Kind of strange for somebody who was in his early 20s when Pearl Harbor was bombed. Perhaps he didn't like the 'race-mixing' that was going on in the military with the Tuskeegee Airmen, the all Japanese-American 442nd Regiment or the Navajo code-talkers.

Byrd was also an opponent of the War in Iraq, leading to this hugely ironic quote from the [very] senior Senator in 2004:

This huge spending bill—$87 billion—has been rushed through this chamber in just one month. There were just three open hearings by the Senate Appropriations Committee on $87 billion—$87 for every minute since Jesus Christ was born—$87 billion without a single outside witness called to challenge the administration's line

Curiously, the selectively fiscally conservative Senator saw absolutely no problem with throwing 10 times as much money down a hole when he voted to pass President Obama's stimulus bill five years later. I also get the feeling that if he had his way, the Military would be deployed elsewhere with racially segregated units.

Byrd's death and the vacant Senate seat brings up the possibility of another special election in an already hotly contested election year. According to the West Virginia Secretary of State:

If the vacancy occurs less than two years and six months before the end of the term, the Governor appoints someone to fill the unexpired term and there is no election. If the vacancy occurs two years and six months or more before the end of the term, the Governor appoints someone to serve until the unexpired term is filled at the conclusion of the next candidate filing period, Primary Election, General Election and certification. The winner of that General Election fills the balance of the unexpired term. The election for the full term will be held as scheduled regardless of the date of the vacancy.

These provisions are set out in West Virginia Code §3-10-3.

Since the vacancy occurred with more than two and a half years to go in Byrd's term, that means that Gov. Joe Manchin will be required to call for a special election. In the meantime, Manchin will name a replacement to serve in the vacant seat between now and the special election.