HOME | DD

Description
The 1985 movie Runaway Train was based on an actual event that happened back in 1962 when a consist of 4 New York Central EMD GP20's that were being serviced at the yard just outside of Syracuse, NY took off onto Track One.

It was Ocotber 26, 1962. Jim Gerace, then a young machinist employed by the New York Central Railroad in East Syracuse, was doing some work on a new EMD GP20 which was coupled to three other identical units at the fueling station, near the old DeWitt diesel house. The engines had just been fueled and were scheduled to go out on NC-1, a westbound fast freight. Bob Cox, an engine hostler was making a brake test when something went wrong. Cox either jumped or fell off the locomotive while the throttle was engaged in the eighth notch - wide open.

The brakes were on, but they did not hold, and the locomotives started to move. Gerace said he thought the engineer was on the lead unit and the engines started to move. But he then lost sight of him and the locomotives started to move down through the yard.

Peter Walters, a road foreman of engines at DeWitt, was just getting out of his car when he saw the locomotives go by at about 25 miles per hour, with the brakes on and fire flying all around the wheels.

Walters called the engine house to find out if they were grinding the wheels on these units, as was sometimes done in this manner. He was told they were not, and suddenly someone reported that NC-1's engines were gone. Gerace said he expected the engines would derail at any moment due to the rough track in the yards. But he remained on board because he didn1t want to risk trying to get off if they derailed.

As fate would have it, the switches were properly aligned so that the engines eventually got out on to the main tracks and headed down the old passenger main through Syracuse which had recently been taken out of service. An unsuccessful attempt was made to try and catch them with a yard engine, but by the time the reached the "throat," or west end, the engines were going 35 miles per hour on track 1.

The train dispatcher on duty at that time was Sam Giglia, and when he was advised of the situation, began clearing track 1 of trains as fast as he could. Meanwhile, the interconnected locomotives were picking up speed and were soon going passenger train speed, or better.

The locomotives of BF-3, a westbound fast freight, were cut off on a siding at Newark, and were prepared to give chase once the runaways went by. But by the time they got to Newark, they were traveling at 75 miles per hour. Meanwhile, an engine was posted on track 2 in Brighton, hoping to cross over behind them and catch them. A passenger train was tucked away at the station in Rochester. Its locomotives were also poised to give chase.

When it was fairly certain that the units had stopped, they were on track 1 A locomotive came east from Rochester and cautiously down track 2 when Gerace saw the lights of an approaching engine. He nervously got out three or four fusees, ripped the caps off, but threw them away before he realized he needed them to ignite the fusees. When the engine arrived on the scene, he was scrambling on the ground looking for the caps to the fusees.

Speed tapes on the engines only record as high as 92 miles per hour, but as an indication of the actual speed they attained, they covered the 4.6 miles between Lyons and Newark in two minutes flat, which equals 121.8 miles per hour. Brake shoes were worn down paper thin, and were laced with fine cracks, and were red colored, indicating the intense heat they had undergone.

Description
The 1985 movie Runaway Train was based on an actual event that happened back in 1962 when a consist of 4 New York Central EMD GP20's that were being serviced at the yard just outside of Syracuse, NY took off onto Track One.

It was Ocotber 26, 1962. Jim Gerace, then a young machinist employed by the New York Central Railroad in East Syracuse, was doing some work on a new EMD GP20 which was coupled to three other identical units at the fueling station, near the old DeWitt diesel house. The engines had just been fueled and were scheduled to go out on NC-1, a westbound fast freight. Bob Cox, an engine hostler was making a brake test when something went wrong. Cox either jumped or fell off the locomotive while the throttle was engaged in the eighth notch - wide open.

The brakes were on, but they did not hold, and the locomotives started to move. Gerace said he thought the engineer was on the lead unit and the engines started to move. But he then lost sight of him and the locomotives started to move down through the yard.

Peter Walters, a road foreman of engines at DeWitt, was just getting out of his car when he saw the locomotives go by at about 25 miles per hour, with the brakes on and fire flying all around the wheels.

Walters called the engine house to find out if they were grinding the wheels on these units, as was sometimes done in this manner. He was told they were not, and suddenly someone reported that NC-1's engines were gone. Gerace said he expected the engines would derail at any moment due to the rough track in the yards. But he remained on board because he didn1t want to risk trying to get off if they derailed.

As fate would have it, the switches were properly aligned so that the engines eventually got out on to the main tracks and headed down the old passenger main through Syracuse which had recently been taken out of service. An unsuccessful attempt was made to try and catch them with a yard engine, but by the time the reached the "throat," or west end, the engines were going 35 miles per hour on track 1.

The train dispatcher on duty at that time was Sam Giglia, and when he was advised of the situation, began clearing track 1 of trains as fast as he could. Meanwhile, the interconnected locomotives were picking up speed and were soon going passenger train speed, or better.

The locomotives of BF-3, a westbound fast freight, were cut off on a siding at Newark, and were prepared to give chase once the runaways went by. But by the time they got to Newark, they were traveling at 75 miles per hour. Meanwhile, an engine was posted on track 2 in Brighton, hoping to cross over behind them and catch them. A passenger train was tucked away at the station in Rochester. Its locomotives were also poised to give chase.

When it was fairly certain that the units had stopped, they were on track 1 A locomotive came east from Rochester and cautiously down track 2 when Gerace saw the lights of an approaching engine. He nervously got out three or four fusees, ripped the caps off, but threw them away before he realized he needed them to ignite the fusees. When the engine arrived on the scene, he was scrambling on the ground looking for the caps to the fusees.

Speed tapes on the engines only record as high as 92 miles per hour, but as an indication of the actual speed they attained, they covered the 4.6 miles between Lyons and Newark in two minutes flat, which equals 121.8 miles per hour. Brake shoes were worn down paper thin, and were laced with fine cracks, and were red colored, indicating the intense heat they had undergone.