Rail stolen from South Wexford line
 

I wonder will the NTA demand immediate reinstatement if it turns out these were laid track panels and not just lying around the place? And if 2,800 euro of IE track was just lying around the place, how much would it have to be worth before it was worth transporting to a secure site? The NTA may not subscribe to the New Ross Echo though - maybe someone should send them a copy...

http://www.newrossecho.ie/news/story...ukfmh&cat=news

The NTA are in the loop by now and we would expect immediate reinstatement

It is a little unclear as the rails on the south wexford are 45 foot lengths

On the one hand I'm not entirely surprised, with the recent rises in commodity prices and the failing economy this sort of thing is to be expected - note that in recent years houses - some partly built and even some occupied, have been burgled for their copper wiring. I even remember reading an urban legend that just outside Chernobyl, all the radiators and television sets abandoned from the old Pripyat city have been stolen by marauders over the years, as even that (irradiated) stuff has some value.

On the other hand, it seems very serendipitous for Irish rail that a line they want to get rid of suddenly gets its rails 'stolen' ...

On a more practical level, where from the black market might this steel end up? Are there any steel mills in Ireland? Have they been asked to query the origin of any old rails they might be sold? Is there a code of practice in Ireland or Europe to deal with stolen steel (railways, beer kegs etc)?

Well they aren't the smartest thieves they could have chossen a line which was out of sight, big lumps of the Waterford Dungarvan line are still in situ

Someone from SWIFFT is heading over to Campile this afternoon to get some photos and see what is going on

The rail is probably 45 foot bullhead stuff from 1905, rare easy to spot but of poor quality compared to modern rail

It was surplus track dumped at Campile that went missing

The rail line remains intact

Looking for 64 foot length UIC 50 or 54 rail stamped CIE dating from 1970's or early 1980's probably

Last year in The Netherlands several hundred metres of track were lifted overnight from an operational line in the east of the country. Apparently the price of commodities is high enough that that can be worthwhile!

However, it's not as likely in Ireland as you still need to get the metal to somewhere it can be recycled and since Irish Steel closed down, that means shipping it out of the state.

If the tracks that were stolen were just laying around then it's only a matter of time until it happens on the Dublin - Waterford Line. About 10 mins from Waterford IE have recently put new tracks laying around a double level crossing. They are replacing a small section of current track which is causing problems for the 2200 and they now have speed restrictions in place until the new tracks are put down. They have being there with about 6 weeks or more.