BNSF helps Mt. Rainier Scenic Railroad recover from bridge fire

By SUSAN GREEN
Staff Writer

The distant smoke was worrisome. That it was black made Bethan Maher, executive director of the Mt. Rainier Scenic Railroad (MRSR), anxious. 

“White smoke indicates a forest fire,” she explained. “Black smoke is a sign of a structural fire, and we knew that the only structure in the remote part of the forest had to be one of our wooden bridges.” 

Holding out hope that the structure in question might be the smaller of two bridges on the rail line running near Mt. Rainier, Maher and a couple of MRSR employees drove as close to the site as possible. Still a mile from the fire, they learned from volunteer firefighters that the larger bridge was burning. 

Because it was nightfall, the firefighters didn’t want to risk going into the dense woods. By morning, nearly all 400 feet of the 28-span wooden bridge were engulfed in flames.

“The Department of Natural Resources (DNR) built a fire break to contain the fire,” said Maher. “Because the bridge was a on a 12-degree curve, they worried the bridge would fall to its side and might cause the fire to spread to the valley.”

Luckily, the bridge collapsed into itself and while its remnants burned for nearly a week, the fire was contained in four days. The DNR did an incredible job of putting out the fire, but the 120-year-old bridge was a total loss. 

While Maher said there’s no playbook for how to rebuild, especially in such a remote area, the organization has been overwhelmed by the community’s generosity, including the expertise of those who have bridge-building experience.

Kasie Howland, BNSF’s general director of line maintenance in the region, is one.

“I follow the railroad on social media, mainly because I’ve been wanting to make a trip on their rail bikes (a pedal-powered rail excursion),” Howland explained of how she found out about the damaged bridge. “I’m a bridge nerd, so I offered to provide technical guidance when I learned about the fire.”

Investigators determined that the April 30 fire was deliberately set. The fire and its damage would take the little tourist railroad down for a day or two but not out. MRSR is owned by Western Forest Industries Museum, a local nonprofit that acquired the railroad in 2022.

MRSR operates round-trip excursion trains using historic equipment, including steam engines, several miles outside the Mt. Rainier National Park and about halfway between Seattle and Portland, Oregon.

While tourist trains are the bread and butter for the railroad, the 32-mile line where the fire occurred is on an active logging branch between Morton and Mineral, Washington. MRSR planned to operate freight trains as a shortline railroad to support the mills there.

The plan was to begin those operations in 2026. Now those are on pause as MRSR raises funds to rebuild its largest trestle bridge.

A few weeks after the fire, Howland met with Maher and their roadmaster, who took her to the bridge site. “I talked through with them what their next steps would be: how to safely disconnect the rail hanging off the bridge ends, the best way to demolish the remains, what type of equipment they might use, and what type of permits or agencies they needed to reach out to,” she said of that initial visit. 

Howland has offered to continue to volunteer her personal time and expertise, including reviewing bids and documents on MRSR’s behalf.

“This is a nonprofit that’s trying to keep an old railroad alive,” she said of her commitment. “When you see another railroader struggling, you just want to help.” 

While the nonprofit faces a long road to recovery, the railroad is still running its regular excursions. A bridge fund has been set up to aid in the rebuild.