WAUWATOSA, Wis. — CPKC’s main line across Wisconsin is closed, disrupting freight and Amtrak operations, after washouts stemming from torrential rains on Saturday.
Locations near Milwaukee reported as much as 14.5 inches of rain between Saturday evening and 2 p.m. on Sunday, according to WISN-TV. Wauwatosa, Wis., just west of Milwaukee, reported 7.15 inches; there, the Menomonee River overflowed its banks, with water flowing across the CPKC main line. As of 3 p.m. Sunday, crews were working to clear debris where the rail line crosses the river in downtown Wauwatosa, where water was still at the height of the bridge.
A CPKC spokesman said crews were working to clear the tracks in portions of Milwaukee and Wauwatosa but had no information on when the tracks might reopen.
As of 7:30 p.m., the eastbound Empire Builder was at the Duplainville crossing with CN in Pewaukee, Wis., and the westbound Builder was at the Milwaukee intermodal station, waiting for the tracks to reopen. Amtrak had bused westbound Borealis passengers from Milwaukee to Pewaukee, about 16 miles west of downtown, where the eastbound train was turned and sent west toward the Twin Cities. Eastbound passengers were bused from Pewaukee, with one bus going to Milwaukee and another on to Chicago.
— Updated at 7:50 p.m. CT with later information on status of Amtrak trains.
