Workers will need to not only remove disabled trains, but also remove the tracks, regrade the railbed, then lay down the tracks again, according to Finch.
In the early days of the oil industry, a New England snowstorm or a washed-out Texas railbed could lead to a spike in prices or even shortages for entire regions of the country.
"Personally look at the bed and see if by pushing the mattress to the far side of the bed they can make a gap that is big enough to put four fingers between that and the rail, " he advises.