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New page: The '''''Sunset Limited''''' is a passenger train line operated by Amtrak that formerly connected Pensacola and other Gulf Coast communities on track owned by CSX Transportation to...
The '''''Sunset Limited''''' is a passenger train line operated by [[Amtrak]] that formerly connected Pensacola and other Gulf Coast communities on track owned by [[CSX Transportation]] to destinations as far west as Los Angeles and as far east as Jacksonville and Orlando. Service to Pensacola has been suspended since [[Hurricane Katrina]] in [[2005]].
==Big Bayou Canot train disaster==
On [[September 22]], [[1993]], at 2:54 a.m., the ''Sunset Limited'' derailed over the [[Big Bayou Canot]] near [[Mobile]], after a barge struck one of the railroad bridge's pilings. Three engines and four railroad cars blunged into the bayou, killing five crew members and forty-two passengers, including [[Betty Skelton|Betty]] and [[Oscar Skelton]] of [[Pace]]. It remains the the worst train disaster in Amtrak's history.
Among the survivors were six Northwest Florida residents: [[Daisy Netters]] of Pensacola, [[Carole Simpson|Carole]] and [[George Simpson]] of [[Midway]], [[Mary O'Donovan|Mary]] and [[Rubin O'Donovan]] of [[Brownsville]], and [[David Jordan]] of [[Molino]].<ref>"Deadly Amtrak crash haunts survivors - 10 years later." ''Pensacola News Journal'', September 21, 2003.</ref>
==Suspension after hurricanes==
The ''Sunset Limited'' was temporarily suspended after damage from [[Hurricane Ivan]], mostly between Pensacola and [[Chattahoochee]], washed out six miles of tracks and damaged eight bridges.<ref>"Ivan floods and winds devastate train lines." ''Pensacola News Journal'', September 24, 2004.</ref>
It was shut down again after [[Hurricane Katrina]] damaged track and several Mississippi bridges in [[2005]]. Even after repairs were made and CSX freight service resumed, Amtrak remained "reluctant to resume service" east of New Orleans, citing "concern about limited ridership and increased losses."<ref>"Bay area Amtrak service in limbo." ''Pensacola News Journal'', December 28, 2007.</ref>
[[As of 2008]], the Pensacola [[Amtrak station]] at [[Heinberg Street]] remains closed.
==References==
{{reflist}}
[[Category:Railroading]]
==Big Bayou Canot train disaster==
On [[September 22]], [[1993]], at 2:54 a.m., the ''Sunset Limited'' derailed over the [[Big Bayou Canot]] near [[Mobile]], after a barge struck one of the railroad bridge's pilings. Three engines and four railroad cars blunged into the bayou, killing five crew members and forty-two passengers, including [[Betty Skelton|Betty]] and [[Oscar Skelton]] of [[Pace]]. It remains the the worst train disaster in Amtrak's history.
Among the survivors were six Northwest Florida residents: [[Daisy Netters]] of Pensacola, [[Carole Simpson|Carole]] and [[George Simpson]] of [[Midway]], [[Mary O'Donovan|Mary]] and [[Rubin O'Donovan]] of [[Brownsville]], and [[David Jordan]] of [[Molino]].<ref>"Deadly Amtrak crash haunts survivors - 10 years later." ''Pensacola News Journal'', September 21, 2003.</ref>
==Suspension after hurricanes==
The ''Sunset Limited'' was temporarily suspended after damage from [[Hurricane Ivan]], mostly between Pensacola and [[Chattahoochee]], washed out six miles of tracks and damaged eight bridges.<ref>"Ivan floods and winds devastate train lines." ''Pensacola News Journal'', September 24, 2004.</ref>
It was shut down again after [[Hurricane Katrina]] damaged track and several Mississippi bridges in [[2005]]. Even after repairs were made and CSX freight service resumed, Amtrak remained "reluctant to resume service" east of New Orleans, citing "concern about limited ridership and increased losses."<ref>"Bay area Amtrak service in limbo." ''Pensacola News Journal'', December 28, 2007.</ref>
[[As of 2008]], the Pensacola [[Amtrak station]] at [[Heinberg Street]] remains closed.
==References==
{{reflist}}
[[Category:Railroading]]