Freight train horn blares in Portland

Tuesday, April 24, 2012

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) -- Residents of east Portland say the maddeningly loud noise of a stuck horn on a Union Pacific freight train engine lasted for more than an hour before an engineer finally shut it off.

How loud was the Monday night annoyance? KGW-TV reports (http://bit.ly/I7uHg6 ) it could be heard a mile away. Nearby resident Jacob Rose says, "It felt like somebody had parked a car inside of my brain" with the horn blasting.

Neighbors left their homes and came down to the tracks with flashlights to sort out why the horn would not stop.

KGW reports the noise started about 9:30 p.m. and ended about 11 p.m. The station says a mechanical malfunction was to blame.

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Information from: KGW-TV, http://www.kgw.com/