The longest shift of my career…
Booked on at 1314 to work Hoo – Eastleigh – Hoo, but due to Storm Eunice, the morning run got trapped on the wessex region.
I ended up getting a taxi to Clapham to take the morning driver off and at 1822, was allowed to enter Kent.
Most of the journey was spent at 20mph examining the line for debris.
Upon arrival at Hoo, I was asked if I could take my original train to Eastleigh still as they needed the traffic for an important renewal job this weekend.
After a bit of planning, I was on my way (in a DB loco!) to Eastleigh at 2111. Plan was to get to Eastleigh for 1am and head into a hotel for the night.
Wessex had other ideas! Got to Barnes and all the way to Addlestone was subjected to 20mph line examination and multiple calls to the signaller reporting trees on the line.
I finally made it to Basingstoke at 0115 and was told I had a route conductor coming to take me via Andover to Eastleigh…
We set off, with yet more cautionary running due to trees on the line.. And was ask to examine the entire single line from Romsey to Eastleigh via Chandlers Ford.
A couple of small trees found, then one we couldn’t shift. Another hour later, Network rail removed the tree and I finally arrived into Eastleigh at 5am.. Some 8 hours after leaving Hoo.
The hotel was switched for a cab home and I finally booked off having been on shift for 18hr41min…
Here are some photos from the day/night.
