(BLACKBURN, Mo., AP) — Blackburn residents say they’re frustrated with a company that won’t maintain the pond it built next to the railroad tracks in the town.
Property owner Kansas City Southern tells The Kansas City Star (http://bit.ly/2aKLneO) that it no longer needs the reserve of water next to its tracks in Blackburn, and that it isn’t aware of any agreements obligating the company to maintain the pond for use by the local community.
Town officials had long assumed the railroad had an obligation to keep the dam plugged so the pond would stay full. But a search by the city clerk so far has failed to unearth a legal agreement with Kansas City Southern or any of the other railroads that had owned the tracks and right-of-way generations before.
Blackburn is about 70 miles east of Kansas City.
A small dam that captured water for the pond was damaged last year after heavy rains, causing most of the pond to empty out. The body of water has since turned mostly to mud.
Local officials say the pond’s state puts a volunteer force in danger of not having water the next time there is a fire in the town.
Repairing the spillway to make sure water escapes by going over the dam and through a culvert under the railroad tracks could cost Blackburn about $300,000.
Mayor Karlin Breshears said most of the cost to fix the pond would come from trying to get the necessary permits to deal with the railroad right-of-way. Breshears said that if the company simply fixed things, the cost would be closer to $30,000. Saline County Emergency Management Department director Emmitt Williams said he is worried about a train derailment due to erosion caused by the culvert.
The Missouri Department of Transportation is studying the situation. Department railroad administrator Eric Curtit said the state would insist that the railroad company make repairs if erosion threatened the safety of the tracks.
Saline County Emergency Management Department director Emmitt Williams said he is worried about a train derailment.
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Information from: The Kansas City Star, http://www.kcstar.com.
Town officials had long assumed the railroad had an obligation to keep the dam plugged so the pond would stay full. But a search by the city clerk so far has failed to unearth a legal agreement with Kansas City Southern or any of the other railroads that had owned the tracks and right-of-way generations before.
Blackburn is about 70 miles east of Kansas City.
A small dam that captured water for the pond was damaged last year after heavy rains, causing most of the pond to empty out. The body of water has since turned mostly to mud.
Local officials say the pond’s state puts a volunteer force in danger of not having water the next time there is a fire in the town.
Repairing the spillway to make sure water escapes by going over the dam and through a culvert under the railroad tracks could cost Blackburn about $300,000.
Mayor Karlin Breshears said most of the cost to fix the pond would come from trying to get the necessary permits to deal with the railroad right-of-way. Breshears said that if the company simply fixed things, the cost would be closer to $30,000. Saline County Emergency Management Department director Emmitt Williams said he is worried about a train derailment due to erosion caused by the culvert.
The Missouri Department of Transportation is studying the situation. Department railroad administrator Eric Curtit said the state would insist that the railroad company make repairs if erosion threatened the safety of the tracks.
Saline County Emergency Management Department director Emmitt Williams said he is worried about a train derailment.
___
Information from: The Kansas City Star, http://www.kcstar.com.
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