Federal Lawsuit Against The D&SNG Settled

Above, the D&SNG train at Highline above the Animas River this month. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

I hadn't heard anything about the federal lawsuit against the Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad over the 416 Fire in 2018.

So, I did some checking and found that the matter had been settled earlier this year.

According to the Durango Telegraph (June 23 article):

As part of the settlement in a federal lawsuit related to the 416 Fire, the Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad is now subject to sudden closures if wildfire danger is too high, which is having mixed results just a few weeks in practice.

In March, the D&SNG and the U.S. Forest Service signed a settlement stemming from the federal lawsuit, in which the railroad was accused of starting the 416 Fire, north of Durango in the summer of 2018. The agreement held several conditions, namely that D&SNG would pay the federal government $20 million to recoup firefighting costs. 

In addition, the D&SNG has agreed to not run trains if wildfire danger is too high, as determined by a fire restriction system set by the Forest Service.

“It’s definitely a game changer for the way we do business,” Jeff Johnson, general manager of the D&SNG, said. “And cancellations are the most difficult part of this process, because we’re aware this is something people have planned for a long time. It’s on their bucket list.” 

With an incredibly dry spring and early summer, the D&SNG has already been forced to shut down several days this June, canceling thousands of reservations and affecting the two towns that rely on the tourism dollars, Durango and Silverton. 

The situation is further muddled by the fact that after the 416 Fire, the D&SNG promised to convert its fleet from running on coal, which holds a huge fire risk, to oil- and diesel-burning engines. The D&SNG spent millions to fulfill this commitment, but even still, these locomotives are not allowed to run in certain conditions. 

Above, the Animas River next to the train during the trip to Silverton. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

During our ride on the train earlier this month, I did not see any evidence of the fire. The locomotive that took us to Silverton is one converted to oil from coal. Admittedly, I miss the smell of burning coal.

Fortunately, we've had a great monsoon season which lowered the fire danger in the San Juan Mountains where the train runs. We had rain while we were in Silverton and it rained prior to our arrival at Alpen Rose RV Park in Durango. We had some rainfall during our train ride and we saw several waterfalls along the way. 

To read the full article, go here.