Some eastern US rail shipments restart after Helene

Some railroad operations in the southeastern US have resumed in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene, but major carriers warn that some freight may be delayed while storm-damaged tracks are repaired.

Rail lines in multiple states were damaged after Hurricane Helene made landfall on the northeastern Florida coast on 26 September as a category 4 storm and traveled northwards as a downgraded but still dangerous storm into Georgia, Tennessee, and the Carolinas. The storm left significant rain and wind damage in its wake, including washed-away roads, flooded lines, downed trees and power outages.

Eastern railroads CSX and Norfolk Southern (NS) said they are working around the clock to restore service to their networks.

Norfolk Southern said it had made "significant progress" towards its recovery with most major routes back in service including its Chattanooga, Tennessee, to Jacksonville, Florida, line as well as its Birmingham, Alabama, to Charlotte, North Carolina route.

Norfolk Southern said freight moving through areas that are out of service could "see delays of 72 hours".

Several of Norfolk Southern's other routes remain out of service, including rail lines east and west of Asheville, North Carolina, because of historic levels of flooding. There are multiple trees to remove along a 70-mile stretch from Macon, Georgia, to Brunswick, Georgia. And downed power lines are keeping the railroad's lines from Augusta, Georgia, to Columbia, South Carolina, and Millen, Georgia, out of service.

CSX said "potential delays remain" but did not provide specifics. However, the railroad said it had made "substantial progress" in clearing and repairing its network.

The railroad's operations in Florida have mostly reopened, as have rail lines in its Charleston subdivision, which crosses South Carolina and Georgia.

But bridge damage and major flooding has kept CSX's Blue Ridge subdivision out of service. A portion of the line running from Erwin, Tennessee, to Spartanburg, South Carolina, has been cleared, but CSX said "a long-term outage" is expected for other parts of the rail line.

By Abby Caplan