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B&O Museum to Host “First Responders Day” This Weekend

B&O Railroad Museum’s Alco S2 took part in the grade crossing collision demonstration in 2019 during “First Responders Day.” Photo by M.T. Burkhart.

B&O Museum to Host “First Responders Day” This Weekend

By M.T. Burkhart

The B&O Museum in Baltimore will host a “First Responders Day” on Saturday, Sept. 12, featuring a visiting CSX locomotive as well as a controlled grade crossing collision demonstration.

Front and center will be CSX ES44AC-H 911, dubbed the “Spirit of our First Responders.” It is painted in vibrant red with white and gold striped accents along with the logo of program partners. It also features generic police, fire and emergency medical services logos.

This outing represents the first public appearance in 2020 of any of the three CSX “Pride in Service” locomotives. The 911 was spotted headed north over the Labor Day weekend on CSX manifest Train Q410 and was expected to be set off in Baltimore early this week.

There will also be a controlled collision between a locomotive and a car, showing what happens in a grade crossing crash. A local volunteer fire department will practice an extraction following the simulated accident.

“Our controlled collision aims to demonstrate the importance of motorists yielding to trains at railroading crossings, and representatives from Operation Lifesaver will be on-site to help spread awareness about this critical aspect of railroad safety,” the museum said.

First Responders Day is set for Sept. 12 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Museum admission is $20 plus $5 for the train ride to the collision demonstration area. For more info, visit www.borail.org.

This article was posted on: September 11, 2020