| At about 9:30 PM on Saturday, February 20, 2010, a BNSF Railway westbound derailed and caught fire inside Tunnel 9 - The tunnel at the bottom of the famed Tehachapi Loop. The location made fighting the fire difficult, and it took over 24 hours for the conflagration to be extinguished. Weeks later, a collection of wheels from the covered hoppers that burned are stacked near the tunnel, and stresses and heat have left many of them deformed. Along with the deformed wheel, note the bent axle as well. |