10th Aug 2017

This was a very rare event I was able to capture, given that (a) this was my first ever visit to Florida, and (b) I had no idea this train was running.

The Florida East Coast Railway had surprisingly been acquired earlier in the year by Grupo Mexico, the world's forth largest mining company, and owner of Ferromex, the main Mexican freight railroad. Observers had assumed that the railroad would have been picked up by Watco, or Genesee & Wyoming, but Grupo Mexico obviously came up with the cash!

So, on this day, as I and my colleagues were looking for a spot to catch a freight or two, we stumbled on this section of the line at Ormond, alongside a smelly sewage plant (who says Florida is all about "the mouse"!) and saw that the colour light signals were illuminated, a sign that a train was in section. And along came this one, headed by two gleaming SD40-2s nos. 713 & 714, hauling a well car containing what we assumed might be a generator for the two business cars behind. This was an officers special from Jacksonville to Miami, with representatives of Grupo Mexico on board, inspecting their new estate. It is seen here heading south at 09.25, the train I.D. being FEC BIZ 10. Lucky, or what?