Chamois Fire Department personnel were called out Friday evening to assist with westbound Amtrak train No. 313, which was experiencing mechanical difficulties while traveling to Kansas City from St. Louis.

According to Chamois Fire Chief James Mehmert, reports varied as to the cause of the damage which temporarily sidelined the Missouri River Runner, an Amtrak train that travels scenic stretches between St. Louis and Kansas City.

“When we were dispatched, we were told the train was at Hog Pen Road, but when we got there, the train was at the crossing in Chamois,” said Mehmert. “They called us because there was smoke, and the conductor told us they thought maybe a tree branch had broken off and fallen on one of the cars.”

However, according to Amtrak spokesman Marc Magliari, the damage was caused by a boulder, which apparently struck the train around 6 p.m. between Washington and Hermann.

Still, the train moved on to Hermann, where it was inspected and cleared to proceed. However, the electrical cabinet soon began smoking again, forcing the train to stop for a second time.

Magliari said it was determined at mile-marker 95.4, east of Chamois near Morrison, that it was no longer safe to continue. The Chamois crossing is near mile-marker 100, and the train was directed to stop there.

“We will always decide how to proceed based on the safety of our passengers and crew,” said Magliari. “We are grateful for the assistance of the Chamois Fire Department.”

After speaking with the conductor, firefighters inspected the train car.

“There was a lot of damage,” said Mehmert. “You could see daylight through the hole in the roof of the car.”

The damage occurred above a handicapped-accessible restroom and an electrical cabinet, the latter of which apparently caught fire due to an electrical short.

“When we looked at the electrical cabinet, we could see that there had been a small fire but it had been put out,” said Mehmert.

Firefighters used a thermal-imaging unit to make sure there were no other hot spots, and then asked if electric could be shut down to the cabinet.

“They told us they could shut off electric to the whole car, and that’s what they did,” said Mehmert. “We watched them shut if off.”

At that point, Mehmert said the train continued westbound toward Kansas City before making its way east toward Hermann.

Magliari said from a logistical standpoint, moving west would make it easier to accommodate other trains or to maneuver the train into a better position for the trip to Hermann, where the plan was to offload passengers to alternate transportation.

“We attempted to get buses to Hermann but were unable to do so in a timely manner,” said Magliari. “We understand this was an inconvenience for our passengers and we apologize for the lack of buses.”

Once at Hermann, a lengthy process was undertaken to coupled Train No. 313 with eastbound train No. 316 for the trip to St. Louis. The train arrived there at approximately 12:45 a.m. Saturday.

One of the 145 passengers was treated for smoke inhalation, according to Amtrak, but no other injuries were reported.

Magliari encouraged all passengers of Train No. 313 to open a case with Amtrak’s customer relations department to provide feedback on the experience.