As Hurricane Isaac approaches landfall in the Gulf Coast, the major Class I railroads in the area are making preparations. Here's a listing of the latest updates provided by the carriers serving the region:

BNSF

No service advisory available as of yet.  Anticipated service delays of 24-48 hours on traffic moving within affected areas.

CN

No service advisory available as of yet.  Anticipated service delays of 24-48 hours on traffic moving within affected areas.

CSXT

New Orleans, Mobile and Pascagoula are currently in the final stages of clearing their yards due to the expected landfall of Isaac Tues/Weds.  This traffic will be routing to various locations North and/or Northwest to be temporarily staged until the inclement weather has passed and conditions are deemed safe to return.  All interchanges have been cleared from these locations and all industrial work will be curtailed for at least the next 48 hours.  

Any further updates will be passed along as they become available.

Additional CSXT detail:

Subject: Hurricane Isaac plan 8/26

The following profile changes are in place for Hurricane Isaac.  Please direct any questions to Network Directors at 2055. 

R601 – Waycross – Fitz – Manch – Atlanta – Chattanooga – Kayne Ave – Bruceton – Memphis/UP.  (NOSH block and pickup at Atlanta)

R605 – Waycross – Fitz – Manch – Atlanta – Chattanooga – Kayne Ave – Bruceton – Memphis/UP.  (NMLI – NOAV block and pickup at Atlanta).

R145 – Atlanta – Lagrange – Birmingham – Kayne Ave – Bruceton – Memphis/UP. (Blocks same as current)

R683 – Hamlet – Greenwood – Atlanta – Lagrange – Birmingham. (KCS – BN blocks from Hamlet). 

R606 – UP/Memphis – Bruceton – Kayne Ave – Birmingham – Manchester – Fitz – Waycross. (WAX block)

R614 – UP/Memphis – Bruceton – Kayne Ave – Chattanooga – Atlanta – Greenwood – Hamlet. (HAM – GWD block)

R144 – UP/Memphis – Bruceton – Kayne Ave – Chattanooga – Atlanta. (will carry Q144/Q180 block traffic).

UP information.

Omaha request 2.0 trailing tonnage for power on R601. R605/R145 may operate with 1.5 trailing.

I have requested 6 to 8 hour reroute trains into Memphis with 8000 ft. limit in both directions.

Q60525 – Will operate as X60526 from Pensacola. 1 trip only

Q60227 – Will operate as X60226 – NOL – Mobile – Montgomery – Manchester – Fitz – Waycross. 1 trip only.

Will continue to refine the plan. Expect to flow New Orleans/KCS traffic and New Orleans/BN traffic to Birmingham and accumulate for delivery during the week.  Route to be determined.

Traffic destined for Pensacola – Mobile – NO&M – New Orleans/CN – NOPB and local traffic will be held back.

KCS

Per KCS Railroad Service Department (no official service advisory available yet):

All traffic is being moved out of New Orleans and Gulfport today. Will go back to work on Thursday or Friday.  Baton Rouge operations will remain normal. Reserve will be impacted.

A service status update will go out to all customers today in regards to our planning for the storm. All questions in regards to daily storm updates should go through Customer Solutions so that we can provide real time updates.

NOPB

August 26, 2012 at 12:30pm

To All New Orleans Public Belt Employees: Due to the impending storm, Hurricane Isaac, effective Monday, August 27, 2012 at 2:00 p.m., all assignments in all crafts on the New Orleans Public Belt Railroad will be annulled until further notice. Return to work notification will follow the passing of Hurricane Isaac once the determination is made there is no immediate threat to our employees, their families, or the Railroad.

NS

Hurricane Isaac Emergency Plan

Norfolk Southern has implemented emergency plans for the Gulf Coast areas that are being effected by Hurricane Isaac. Traffic normally routed via interchanges in the New Orleans and Mobile areas are being curtailed and some traffic has been rerouted to avoid areas that may be impacted by flooding or high winds. Rail cars held in the areas around Mobile and New Orleans will be moved to avoid areas prone to flooding. Local service in these areas will be suspended effective August 28th until the storm passes and operations can safely resume normal schedules.

Customers with shipments normally moving over these routes should expect delays. Updated ETA and routing information is always available through Pacesetter (Norfolk Southern's web based pipeline management tool), and accessNS

Customers with questions regarding specific shipments should contact the National Customer Service Center.

Customer Service Operations - 800-635-5768

Customers with questions regarding local service should contact their Operations and Service Support Representative.

Operations and Service Support - 800-898-4296

UP

Union Pacific Prepares for Arrival of Tropical Storm Isaac
Announcement Number: CN2012-33

8-26-2012

To Our Customers,

Union Pacific, along with the NS and the CSXT railroads are making preparations for the arrival of Tropical Storm Isaac. The storm could strengthen to a Category 2 hurricane prior to making landfall, currently estimated to be early Wednesday morning along the Gulf Coast near Mobile, Alabama. The City of New Orleans is expected to shut the city's flood gates by 2:00 p.m. Monday afternoon, cutting off rail access into and out of the city.

Effective immediately, Union Pacific operations personnel are working with the CSXT and Norfolk Southern to reroute traffic normally interchanged at New Orleans to the Memphis gateway. Customer shipments that are currently in the New Orleans area that cannot be interchanged prior to the shutting of the flood gates will be moved to higher ground until the storm passes.

In preparation for the arrival of Isaac, Union Pacific is currently moving equipment out of the low-lying areas and positioning materials to begin any necessary repair work as soon as the storm subsides and any damage can be assessed.

Customers with traffic moving through the New Orleans area should anticipate 24- to 48-hour delays.

We will continue to provide updates as more information becomes available.

If you have any questions please contact your Union Pacific representative.

• All shipments originating in Canada which are billed to any Canadian or US destinations
• All shipments originating in the United States which are billed to any Canadian destinations
• The embargo can be rescinded at any time.