The web says these weigh anywhere from 55-75 tons. When I manned an M88 recovery vehicle in the late 80's we were told the Abrams M1A1 weighed 60 tons and the 88 weighed 56 tons.

It's actually an M109 Howitzer. Internet says is weighs only 63,600 lbs. The travel lock on the gun tube never stood a chance.

Isn't that an M109?

Ooops,looked like an Abrams. I guess that turret is taller

That poor train.

Some kid is going to lose a stripe over that.

quote:

Originally posted by BigSwede:
Ooops, looked like an Abrams.

No, it is a M109-series 155mm self-propelled howitzer, probably a M109A7 and given the paint job, probably straight from being reman'd/upgraded. Yes, travel lock is toast. I suspect the turret ring is also toast as I assume it was locked and the turret appeared to "free-wheel", too (the drive gear is definitely gone). The locomotive may have also hit the bustle rack in the back. I wonder if weight/low clearance caused the tractor-trailer to belly-up on the crossing - looks like a slight rise to the tracks? We're not talking chump-change to fix it.

I hope the driver wasn't in the cab!

Hope the truck driver bailed in time.

Edited to add:

The video in this: Fox News -Link, shows the truck driver bailing with about 4 seconds to spare.

Aren't truck drivers supposed to know the upper and lower limits of whatever load they are hauling to prevent these types of senseless accidents? I've seen several videos of trucks getting stuck on railroad crossings and then getting walloped by a freight train.

quote:

Originally posted by calugo:
Aren't truck drivers supposed to know the upper and lower limits of whatever load they are hauling to prevent these types of senseless accidents? I've seen several videos of trucks getting stuck on railroad crossings and then getting walloped by a freight train.

Yes, and nobody is ever supposed to make a mistake, misjudge anything, or be momentarily distracted. Unfortunately though, because at least some of us are human and thus not infallible, sometimes shit does happen.

fortunate it hit at the hitch and ripped it off the truck and not dead center of the tank.

still hard to believe that train stayed on the track.

It's like when I ask my nephew if he knows the number 1 rule of driving:

The train always wins!

Anybody know the area, is there a depot or, base nearby?

Probably going to need some zeroing in,
That's going to eff up the sights .

If you look closely he made that right turn and ended up having the trailer almost (if not entirely) off the pavement with the load darn near up against the lights/crossing arm.

I'd say his problem was a combination of him having the trailer off the pavement and him going slow (if not stopping) to avoid hitting traffic or the utilities.

A little Flex Seal ought to fix it up.

quote:

Originally posted by a1abdj:
If you look closely he made that right turn and ended up having the trailer almost (if not entirely) off the pavement with the load darn near up against the lights/crossing arm.

I'd say his problem was a combination of him having the trailer off the pavement and him going slow (if not stopping) to avoid hitting traffic or the utilities.

Screenshot from the video in the Fox News link I posted above:



Looks like all but maybe on wheel at the rear of the trailer is off the pavement and the trailer itself seems to be hung up on the pavement.

Took too tight of a turn cutting the corner and high-centered himself on the tracks

High-centering on railroad tracks is often a hazard with "low-boy" trailers.

quote:

Originally posted by corsair:
Anybody know the area, is there a depot or, base nearby?

"The artillery vehicle was being transported to the Joint Base Charleston weapons station when the collision occurred, a spokesperson told The Post and Courier."

Link