On October 22, 2020, a 16-car (14 loads and 2 empties) Freeport McMoRan freight powered by four EMD GP38/38-2s headed up the steep three to five percent grade on the railroad’s line from Clifton to Morenci, and stalled on one of the steeper sections, possibly due to one of the locomotives not loading properly. A second FMI train departing Clifton tied its train down at the derail/runaway track just above Clifton and went light engines to shove the stalled train, helping it the rest of the way up the hill to FMI’s yard at Morenci. In this view approaching that yard, nine EMD GP38/38-2 locomotives, fore and aft, growl upgrade into Morenci, Arizona. Nine locomotives for 16 cars!
