BUTLER, Wis. — Clean-up crews are working to remove hopper cars that derailed and went through the wall of a warehouse Monday evening near Milwaukee.
Milwaukee-area media report that several hopper cars from a Union Pacific freight train derailed south of the Butler, Wis., yard and pushed through a wall of a warehouse belonging to a spice and seasoning retailer. No injuries were reported.
The cause of the derailment remains under investigation.
Read the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel report online.
Mr. Landey is correct about Butler yard. Milwaukee, city and county, lack any true “hotspots.” One must head west toward Pewaukee, where at Duplainville the double tracked CP (Milw. Rd.) is crossed by the single track CN (Soo). For some reason the NE quadrant was reinstalled some years ago, but looks unused. Years back there existed also a SE quadrant, allowing the Soo access into Milwaukee.
Unfortunately, D’ville does not offer good vantage points, but one can wet one’s whistle to stave off boredom at the tavern across the street.
Poodoo! Jabba is really gonna be mad about this!
Butler Yard is in Milwaukee and Wauwatosa, both cities in Milwaukee County. The nearest “downtown” type settlement is the Village of Butler which is in Waukesha County (home county of TRAINS-MAG). Further south when at the doctor’s office in Wauwatosa an hour ago I saw a UP train parked at a location where trains generally don’t park. The photo shows all tracks blocked either by the derailed train or the cleanup equipment. The photo, facing south, shows the tracks approaching Butler yard’s south throat (behind the photographer), crossing over Capitol Drive in Wauwatosa…. For UP fans, or vestigial CNW fans, Hampton Avenue in Milwaukee crosses the midpoint of the yard and has sidewalks on both sides. Hampton Avenue is not only the best but pretty much the only vantage point for railfans viewing the yard. Butler Yard has more traffic then one might think considering the abandonment of some CNW freight routes to the north. If anything, traffic seems to be increasing….. The best railfan spot on the West Side, especially in seasons without heavy foliage, is in Wauwatosa at Underwood Parkway (Milwaukee County Parks) where the ex-CNW main crosses over the CP Rail’s (ex-MILW) main while both cross Underwood Creek,