Nebraska's Sand Hills are covered in a yellow carpet of wildflowers (fourpoint evening-primrose, Oenothera rhombipetala) as BNSF Railway coal train C-EBMMHS-065A, a loaded coal train heading from Eagle Butte Mine at Eagle Butte Junction WY to Memphis TN (on the Norfolk Southern) parallels Nebraska Highway 2. A pair of EMD SD70ACe locomotives (9327 and 8537) lead this 135-car train, with an additional two as the rear-end Distributed Power Units (8406 and 8594), handling the 19,265-ton (17476.914 metric tons), 7,191-foot (2191.817-meter) train. The spectacular clouds in the sky would, later this afternoon (and after I headed further south), wreak havoc in nearby Broken Bow as a powerful storm unleashed a brief EF-1 tornado on the far western edge of town, which was in contact with the ground for less than two seconds, but was powerful enough to toss an 800-pound trailer into the far front quarter panel of an adjacent car. The thunderstorm produced several down bursts, which stripped crops to stubble and toppled many trees, as well as snapping or toppling numerous power poles. (Anselmo, Nebraska – July 16, 2024)
