Preserved Railway Engines 4 - Snow Job

Snow Job

7 February, 1985

 North Western Railway, Sodor, United Kingdom 

 The Ffarquhar branch was important, providing coal, slate, and transportation to many towns, and a link to the main line. When it snows, engines put on a sort of skirt on their front and rear bufferbeams called a snowplough. This pushes the snow away from the engine and clears the tracks so that it and other engines can pass. It was a freakishly cold day, and so the rainstorm turned into a snowstorm, coating the railway in a 4 foot block of snow. Thomas, having learned the importance of helping the railway as a whole, didn't object to the snowplow being fitted.

 As he left with Annie, Clarabel, and three coaches left unnamed, he felt happy pushing away the snow, as it meant others didn't have to do it anyway. In fact, it was so uncharacteristic, that his driver himself was surprised at how helpful he was being. "Well, Thomas, looks like you've got some good in you after all!" he chuckled out.
 He pushed the snow away whenever he could.

-----

 The snow blew harder than ever. Thomas couldn't keep up with it, his wheels simply weren't big enough. "Now now, Thomas, if you keep like that you'll burn up all your coal!" his driver reminded him. Wheels spinning, Thomas grunted and stopped, the icy rails making them slip for another hour, but the snow showed no signs of stopping.  Thomas complained, and so did his crew.  It's not fair, they said in unison, that we get to be stuck out here while the other engines got to stay indoors. Percy stayed in because goods couldn't be delivered in this snow, Toby stayed because he couldn't push the snow away if he tried, and Daisy knew a thing or two about her own anatomy and where not to stick snow. Of course, she would soon forget, but that's not today's story.

  Percy was coming the other way with the slate train, and Thomas whistled for help. Percy didn't stop, though. He continued on without so much as a flinch. All Thomas could do was deflate.
 Thomas's boiler went cold. His driver and fireman shivered, the cold overwhelming them. The coaches themselves fell cold too, no longer getting the pleasure of the steam heating.
 All the passengers complained, Annie and Clarabel among them. The passengers complained about many things, like the cold, the railway, and Thomas himself. Annie and Clarabel complained about the poor quality of the snowplough and the snow itself.
 Thomas complained about Percy.

----

  Percy heard Thomas whistle, not paying it too much mind. He must get help once he wants to. He passed a frozen river, the ice glistening in the morning sunlight. It was beautiful, and the six-wheeled coach he was pulling in his train was full of people amazed about the lake's wonder. They were tourists from the Mainland that were going home, and hadn't seen something like that for a while.

 When they got to the station, he, while being uncoupled from his train, told the stationmaster about Thomas.

 "Why, that's why he isn't here!" the stationmaster exclaimed. The stationmaster called the Fat Controller, and Terence was sent out.

---- 

  Thomas had ran out of coal. Terence had simply pushed Thomas into a siding, and once his crew was in a coach, pulled them to the station. They grumbled, got out, and left. Terence uncoupled from the train, went to the siding that the green tank engine sat in, and pulled him to the sheds.

  It's best to have friends to help you out of any situation, don't you agree?

Preserved Railway Engines 3 - Rescue

Rescue

5 February, 1985

  Barrow-in-Furness, England, United Kingdom

 Stop! they yelled, but it was too late. Two engines, one a loaned diesel numbered 37151 and a foreigner, a Class 37, collided. The crash was awfully loud, and Henry wished he could cover his ears to stop hearing what was happening. With a loud bang, 37151's power generator exploded from trying to power her wheels too hard, tearing a hole in her left side wall. Her second-man wasn't nearly as lucky, as he was trying frantically to turn it off. The driving crews of both engines, from the impact, hit their respective windshields.

 Henry didn't look - he couldn't! The carnage was overwhelming. The other foreign engine, a Lancashire and Yorkshire tank engine, though, was simply too curious and watched it play out in its entirety. As soon as it was cleared, 37151 and the English diesel were uncoupled from their trains, coupled to each other, and pushed away. The alien steam engine took as many people as he had empty seats, and headed back for Lancashire.
 Henry, still shocked from the incident, ran to the leftover coaches, waited for the passengers to get out, and pushed them to his own. His driver eased him to the other end of the now doubled rake, and while the passengers got on, tried giving Henry the motivation to pull them to Knapford. He opened the regulator, and they were on their way. It was a slow process, but they eventually started.
  It was hard. He didn't have the puff, a problem that he thought they fixed 50 years ago. But all engines have their limits, he supposed. But he had to do it. The passengers were relying on the Fat Controller's railway to get home. They passed James, who simply whistled, both with his whistle and with his mouth.
 He felt a pain in his wheel, but kept going. As soon as he got to the station, he would have a nice long rest, and go on a siding for his driver to inspect it.
 Henry stopped when he hit a patch of water from the oncoming clouds. Soon it was pouring, with some thunder, and Henry couldn't go on. He and his driver tried everything, from going forward and back, to going full throttle, but nothing happened. It was too wet, and they had used up all the sand yesterday.
  Henry went red in the face, the strain of the long, long rake pulling against him only making the problem worse.
 James puffed up to them, looking somewhat worried. Not only for Henry, whom much to the drivers' ignorance, had a loose coupling rod which fell to the ground, but to the cause of it itself - the 24 coach train behind him. But he helped as best he could. With both Henry and James pulling, they got a grip, and the train was faster than ever.
 Soon they reached the hill, and the train, with wheels slippery and cabs cold, slid down at a breakneck pace, making the rest of the trip go by with ease.

---

 Henry was anxious to hear what the Fat Controller had to say. He didn't give off an iota of happiness, making James worried.
 Still, they made it. He walked up to the engines, and rather than scold them as he seemed  to have intended to do, he asked them why they were pulling a train so large.
 They explained, and he grimaced. That would certainly cut into his wallet, but he was grateful for their help and congratulated them.
 The resident ten-wheeled engine took the train over, pulling it away back to Barrow, as James and Henry puffed triumphantly to a siding. James grinned, it was nice to prove that even a small engine like him could take on the biggest of challenges.
 Henry couldn't help himself, and agreed.