On January 1, 2005, I retired from the
OTR. And so came the end of 12 years of intermittent operation of
the 5623 on the OTR. Errol and I never intended that the 5623
would remain on the OTR after my departure and so it joined the long
list of equipment destined to be moved to Niles Canyon. A
hospital train of all the PLA equipment stored on the old Oakland Army
Base had been in the works for quite some time but the date had not
been finalized until early January. The Union Pacific Railroad
gave the PLA permission to use our own power for the move and we were
ready. Our SD9 5472 would lead the pack followed by the WP 713
and the 5623. 5623 could not lead heading east because it faced
the wrong direction. The 713 was not under power but was ready if
needed so 5472 and 5623 were supplying the horsepower for the move
which consisted of 5 locomotives and 17 cars.
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