Destroyed in a collision on March 31, 1998, the hulk of NS 8917 sits awaiting the scrapper's torch. What's left of NS 6154 sits in the distance.
NS 8917 was a D9-40CW that ran for Norfolk Southern, built in 1996, and later destroyed in a wreck on March 31, 1998 at Lynchburg, Virginia. The unit is known for the fact that there is not a single known photograph of it to have ever been taken while it was in service before its demise.
Lynchburg Crash and Fire[]
Also Destroyed
Repaired and put back into service
65 cars rolled free from Montview Yard after a newly-hired brakeman closed the wrong angle cock, effectively bottling the air, while making a cut. The cars traveled north on #2 track, reaching speeds over thirty mph before slamming into stopped train 155. At the time of the wreck, 9:30am, the 155 had been without a crew for six hours and thankfully no one was injured in the crash and massive fire that followed. Ten cars derailed. The resulting fire, fed by diesel fuel and a tank car filled with acetone, destroyed several freight cars and two locomotives. The City of Lynchburg's salt shed and the equipment stored inside, valued in excess of $ 1 million, also succumbed. The first two locomotives, NS 6154 (SD40-2) and NS 8917 (C40-9W), were a complete loss and they were scrapped on site. The last loco, NS 8580 (C39-8), was repaired and returned to service.