Quick action by Sacramento resident gets broken train track fixed near River Park community
SACRAMENTO — A scary sight was discovered on a Union Pacific train track running through the Sacramento community of River Park: a severed rail that runs above hundreds of homes.
That track was fixed thanks to a vigilant neighbor who noticed something seemed wrong.
Curtis Cogdill made the discovery. Cogdill took a photo of the severed rail showing the metal split and warped, and a gap where no gap is supposed to be.
"It was clear that this was broken track. These are supposed to be one piece, not multiple pieces here," he said.
Cogdill's family lives right next to the tracks, and in recent days, he had noticed a change in the way the trains sounded as they barreled by behind his home.
"As the train started going by, you would hear a clunk that wasn't normal," Cogdill said. "It sounded like a large weight being dropped over and over and over."
Brian Girardot lives in River Park, too. He immediately considered other recent railroad derailments around the country that have caused evacuations.
"We're fans of the railroad because they move commerce, thank God, but we've noticed lots of oil and other hazardous material is going by, and it's a little disconcerting," Girardot said.
River Park neighbors together began alerting authorities once Cogdill's photo of the broken track began circulating.
"I think that helped with all the volume of calls. People were reaching out to the mayor's office, people were calling Amtrak," Cogdill said.
Union Pacific shut the track down and repaired the rail, giving this River Park community a sense of relief after their neighbor first sensed something wrong and then took action.
"It needed to be dealt with," Cogdill said.
Union Pacific spokesperson Mike Jaixen issued a statement in response to CBS13's request for comment. It reads:
"Union Pacific is constantly inspecting our tracks and making repairs, as necessary, to ensure the safe transportation of freight. Our track inspection and maintenance policies go above and beyond regulatory requirements. We spend about $1.9 Billion annually on maintaining our rail infrastructure. It is an integral part of our operations and underscores our commitment to safety and providing reliable service to our customers."
CBS13 is working to get more information from Union Pacific about what could have caused that break.