Willow Creek Slide Disaster
Posted by: hyperheidi
N 47° 27.631 W 115° 44.141
11T E 595290 N 5257116
An avalanche, Feb 10, 1903, swept away part of a 300 ft high trestle. An engine plunged 80 feet and was buried in 30 feet of snow; a passenger car dangled over open space; and a caboose with 8 people dropped into deep snow.
Waymark Code: WMCQ5X
Location: Idaho, United States
Date Posted: 10/02/2011
Views: 17
This railway disaster site is marked with an Idaho historical marker and the scars of the avalanche are still visible even 100 years later.
The marker text:
"Willow Creek Slide
A spectacular avalanche, Feb 10, 1903, swept away part of a trestle--300 feet high--that let Northern Pacific Railway trains descend from this pass since 1890. An engine that plunged 80 feet was buried in 30 feet of snow; a passenger car dangled over open space; and a caboose with 8 people dropped into a deep snowbank. Miraculously, everyone aboard survived that terror-stricken trip. But a new, less hazardous grade replaced that trestle route.
Photo available on website
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