Empty cars blown off the rails

Does not surprise me.  This sort of thing happens every other year in the Dakotas.  The winds were blowing hard here for two solid days.

Kent in SD

I John McPhee's book Uncommon Carriers he spends one chapter riding a coal train back and forth from Wyoming to the gulf coast and comments about how the engineer has to consider side winds and the forecast because the empty hoppers can be blown over on the way back.  There are several places where they would apparently wait if winds were particular strong ahead, until storms passed.  Brings to mind the old Disney cartoon tall talkes of "Prairie Schooners"

I wasn't surprised by last month's incident when the cars were blown off a bridge over a valley. But, this, on a level surface, sure indicates some powerful wind force.