Throwback Thursday - Incident at Hyde Park

This photo looks northwest off the embankment for the Hyde Park Road overpass in London, Ontario.  The signboard for CN Hyde Park is just beyond the yellow crane.  The mobile command centre has been set up just out of the picture to the left, and a lot of men and equipment are on site on February 16, 1995.

By Peter Mumby.

CN Hyde Park is located in the west end of London, Ontario at mile post 4.1 of the Strathroy Subdivision.  In years past, a passenger station was located here, and the short siding that served this facility was still in use in 1995 for the occasional run -around move.  This siding ran off the south mainline track, while the turnout for the Ilderton Spur was located on the north track.  This spur was the truncated south end of the Exeter Subdivision.  All of this trackage was conveniently visible from the Hyde Park Road overpass.

In the early hours of February 16, 1995 an eastbound freight powered by CN 2105 and LMS 723 struck the tail end of another eastbound train which was stopped on the south track just under the overpass.  By the time these photos were made around noon hour, men and machines were in place and the clean-up had commenced.  The LMS unit remained on the track, while the 2105 had been spun around and was off the track, facing south west.  The lease unit survived the crash, while 2105 was retired later in the year.

This photo looks directly west along the double track Strathroy Subdivision.  The Ilderton Spur curves off the north track to the right of the picture.  Trailing unit LMS 723 from the second eastbound train is visible just beyond the CN boxcar which is tipped over the north track.  Presumably the yellow box car next to CN 2105 was the last car on the first eastbound train.