Canadian National 3502

Canadian National 3502 was a MLW M-420 locomotive that became famous when it served as a generator for the city of Boucherville, Quebec, during a snowstorm in 1998.

CN 3553, an MLW M420. Although not the same unit, it is the same locomotive model.

Powering a town

During the snowstorm of 1998, the town of Boucherville, QC had lost power after repeated severe snowstorms. The mayor needed emergency and essential services back up and running, so the mayor chose to contact CN and requested a locomotive be brought. It was then hauled off the tracks by a crane, put onto the streets, where it then rolled down the street under its own power to the powerplant. Once the grid was activated again, the locomotive was driven back to the tracks.[1][2][3][4][5]

What stood out
  • The train powered a town (at least, EMS and Essential Services).
  • It was a decision made by the mayor to use a locomotive.
  • The train literally drove down the road from the crossing it was lifted off of to the town's power grid. No tracks, just pavement.
    • It did leave groove marks in the pavement,[5] however, along with small amounts of damage to the locomotive itself.

References
  1. "That time a train powered a town- CN 3502 - Youtube". That time a train powered a town- CN 3502. 2022-03-18. Retrieved 2022-04-03.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  2. "That Time a Canadian Town Derailed a Diesel Train and Drove It Down the Street to Provide Emergency Power". Gizmodo. Retrieved 2022-04-04.
  3. Ago, Kiligirlin #history • 3 Years (2019-01-12). "Remembering Canada's Worst Ice Storm Ever - Part 5/Postscript - what happened in my home town". Steemit. Retrieved 2022-04-04.
  4. "RailPictures.Net Photo: CN 3502 Canadian National Railway MLW M-420W at Boucherville, Quebec, Canada by pierre fournier". www.railpictures.net. Retrieved 2022-04-04.
  5. Currin, John (2021-02-20). "JC's Trains, Railways all Transport : Canadian National M420W #3502 being rerailed after the city of Boucherville used it as a generator to power city hall during the 1998 ice storms. It was actually driven on the pavement under its own power about 1000 feet. Semi Historical". JC's Trains, Railways all Transport. Retrieved 2022-04-04.
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