Brothers In The Pits: Stories of Industrial Steam

Chapter Four: Bad Coal and Low Clearance

Not too far from where the railway ends its sharp climb to the mines, there is a small bridge which it ducks under. This was a road bridge used by maintenance vehicles, as well as lorries which would make local deliveries of coal. The engines considered it a nuisance, as its low height meant they would have to take great care when traveling under it for fear of them breaking something off - or worse, the bridge itself.
Not long after Kent returned from his repaint, Mr. Johnson had the bridge inspected. Soon, it was determined that the bridge would need some maintenance, so work crews were brought in to handle this work. Unfortunately, the engines still had their own work to do, which meant the trains would have to pay even more attention to what they were doing when working near or under the bridge.
"I know it isn't ideal," Mr. Johnson said to his engines on the morning he made the announcement, "but without the lorries getting the smaller shipments, we could lose out on quite a few contracts. As much as I hate to say this, we'll just have to grit and bear it for the time being. Apart from that, usual duties for all of you." With that, he turned and strode to the office.
Mike groaned. "Great," he said crossly. "That bridge has been a pain in our bunkers before, but this is just ridiculous!"
"It's not like you to get this heated Mike," Kent observed.
"I've always hated that thing," Mike grumbled. "I swear, every time I go under that thing I feel like I'm about to lose my cab roof. The fact that they're doing maintenance on it means it's going to be around for a good while longer. So yeah, excuse me for being a little irritated." He snorted off to load some trucks, leaving the others rather shocked.
"Odd," Alan said. "Mike's never mentioned his dislike for the bridge before. Have you known about this, Melissa?" He asked the other Austerity.
"Yeah," Melissa sighed. "I think it stemmed from an incident that happened not too long after we arrived. Alan had just been sent to the central workshops for an overhaul while we looked after the work. Mike was bringing in a train of empties when a brick fell from the bridge as he was passing under it. You ever wonder why he has that dent on his roof? That's where it came from."
Kent looked at Mike, who wasn't too far away. Sure enough, there was a nasty dent on his cab. "How'd I never notice that?" He wondered aloud.
"Most people don't see it 'till they're told about it," Melissa said. "Anyway, that's enough chitchat for now, we've got orders to fill." The others agreed, and went off to their respective duties.
About a week or so later, a new vein of coal had been discovered in the mineshafts. Unlike most of what came out of Beckington, however, this coal was foul. It was very dirty, dusty coal, and when burned in the engines' fireboxes it produced lots of ash and smoke. The billowing clouds of black soot pouring from the engines' funnels soon became accepted as part of life around the colliery, as Mr. Johnson had been told by his superiors that this new vein would be used for the engines exclusively in order to save higher-quality coal for ordering customers.
"We're at our wit's end," Melissa complained to Sam one morning. "We can't breathe, and there's so much work that needs doing we don't have time to catch what little breath we can. Poor Alan's wheezing can be heard all the way from Agarus when he comes back with the morning workmen's train!"
Sam sighed. "I wish I knew what I could do to help," he said. "Not much a main line engine can do for you guys. Let's just hope something will happen that'll knock some sense into those higher-ups." Little did they know it, but that something would happen a few days later.
It was mid-afternoon on a drizzly Tuesday when Mike coasted into the exchange sidings with a loaded train. He was expecting a normal run, but he realized this wasn't to be when he saw the vans at the head of his train. "What're these for?" He asked the Black Five who had brought them in.
"Supplies for your mine, last I heard," the engine grunted. Mike watched as the big engine snorted out of the station with its goods train, then set about collecting his trucks, grumbling all the while.
As the Austerity was coupled up, his driver spoke to him. "Think you can manage this, old boy?" He asked worriedly. "The rails are gonna be slippery, and these vans aren't going to be helping us out at all."
"I think I can manage," Mike said, half-wheezing. "We have sand at least, so that'll be a big help." The driver was still concerned, but after seeing the look on his engine's face, he agreed. With a blow of the whistle, Mike snorted out of the sidings, back up the hill towards the colliery. Despite his best efforts, the poor engine was gasping for air by the time they reached Agarus. After waiting there for a few minutes to build up steam, he set off again, slipping furiously.
Meanwhile, up at the bridge, the men were working on the supports. After setting up scaffolding to keep the bridge secure, they decided to have a break. They hadn't been resting for very long when Mike came into view, red in the face and coughing profusely. The workmen waved a hello as he approached, and Mike did his best to whistle back.
Everything seemed to happen at once. As Mike went under the bridge, a massive cloud of smoke erupted out of his funnel. It ran through the scaffolding with so much force that they collapsed, leaving the bridge unsupported. No sooner than the last van had cleared the bridge then it fell with a mighty crash. Mike stopped and surveyed the wreckage, the workmen's waving now replaced with shaking fists.
Mr. Johnson inspected the damage. At once, he ordered a new bridge to be built. Mike wasn't blamed for the accident, and was much happier with the new bridge than he was with its predecessor. Best of all, the Coal Board allowed the engines to use the old coal again, realizing that it was for the best. That shows you, doesn't it?