Alaska West Express was trusted with a very important – and heavy – load recently. Driver Kenny Seipel hauled a 150,000-pound steam engine from the Alaska Railroad yard in Anchorage to a Wasilla facility for restoration. Total weight of historic steam engine No. 557, the lowboy trailer and truck: 253,850 pounds. Special permits, pilot cars and trips to the scales were all part of the process. The trip was captured in pictures in the Anchorage Daily News. No. 557 was the last Steam Locomotive in the Alaska Railroad Fleet. The locomotive was saved from the scrap yard by Monte Holm in Moses Lake, Washington. Monte made 557 the centerpiece of museum. After Monte’s death, Vic and Jim Jansen purchased No. 557 and donated it to the Alaska Railroad. After restoration, No. 557 will be used as a dinner train between Anchorage and Whittier.
Topics from this blog: Lynden Alaska West Express Alaska Oversized/Heavy Haul Ground