The Dominican Republic
Central Ingenio Cristóbal Colón

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Ingenio Cristóbal Colón, San Pedro de Macoris (70 km east of S.D.): (March 9th -12th)

ICC was opened in 1883 by Castro y Mola, becoming Cristóbal Colón C.A. in 1921. It is owned by the Vicini family/CAEI and has a daily milling capacity of 5,500 tonnes/day (813,797 t during the 2011/12 season), producing 600-700 tonnes of sugar/day (95,351 t in 2012/13). The molasses are sold mainly to Bacardi Martini in Puerto Rico. Most of the cane appears to still to be cut by hand. 

ICC has the last operating 762 mm gauge railway network in the D.R., with an extent of 68 km. The railway workshops are not at the mill but at Batey Copeyito, at the end of the main line, 30 km west of the mill by road. The mill gets only about 40% of its cane by rail, and the railway here looks to be the “roughest” and most threatened of the three still operating. Between the mill and La Ceiba junction, the main line to Copeyito runs mostly along the Carretera Mella. The branch from La Ceiba to Cayacoita was not in use during the time of our visit. Some loading took place at loading points between La Ceiba and Copeyito, but most cane comes from the cane fields beyond Copeyito, which are off-limits to outsiders, with manned gates at all access roads. These fields extend west of the small town of San José de Los Llanos and branch out into at least five lines. The train crews were all very friendly, offering us cab rides, and at the mill they brought a train out of the gates for us to photograph. We were unable to gain official access to either the mill or the workshops.

In 1962, the year when steam finished, two steam locos were still on roster: a large loco as spare and a small loco as yard shunter. 0-4-2T+T F-4 (Baldwin 12659 5/1892, with replacement boiler x/o 600580/46, new to ICC as No. 3, there was also BLW 13854 of 1893 an 0-4-2 delivered as Colon No. 4) is now plinthed out of sight inside the mill behind the main building (and not near the gate anymore, click here for an image in that position, see also the December 2012 CAEI bulletin  link to http://www.caei.com/boletin/AzucarNavidad2012.pdf dead by October 2014), as is a monorail cane car transporter (‘transbordador de vagones’) formerly used to take cane cars from Ingenio Angelina across the Rio Higuamo (see the September 2011 CAEI bulletin, final page, link to http://www.caei.com/boletin/AZUCAR-13.pdf dead by October 2014).

From 1951, ICC is known to have acquired at least one Davenport and 13 Plymouth diesels, of which the following have been identified with the assistance of John Middleton:

• ICC 2-6-0DH No. 1 Davenport 3311 of 1951 (Type DH24 - reported as dismantled in 2007);
• ICC 6wDH No. 2 Plymouth 5982 of 1957 (WDT type); New to ICC 
• ICC 6wDH No. 3 Plymouth 6399 of 1963 (WDT type); New to ICC
• ICC 6wDH No. 4 Plymouth (probably 6400 of 1963 (WDT type)
• ICC 6wDH No. 5 Plymouth (probably 6401 of 1963 (WDT type)
• ICC 6wDH No. 6 Plymouth (WDT type) - probably second hand, identity not known 
• ICC 6wDH No. 7 Plymouth 7038 of 1975 (TWDT type);
• ICC 6wDH No. 8 Plymouth 7039 of 1975 (TWDT type);
• ICC 6wDH No. 9 Plymouth 7040 of 1975 (TWDT type);
• P&G 6wDH No. 10 Plymouth, by 1997 ex Ponce & Guyama RR, Puerto Rico (Plymouth WLD type 3812 of 1935 (30 ton 6wDM) but rebuilt to 6wDH with new Cat engine by Plymouth in 1962, CAT 343/Allison (ex Twin Disc));
• ICC 6wDH No. 11 Plymouth 5968 of 1957, by 1997 ex Ponce & Guyama RR No. 19, Puerto Rico (WDT 35 ton, type Detroit/Twin Disc, to be rebuilt to Allison in 1997);
• P&G 6wDH No. 7 Plymouth 5718 of 1954, by 1997 ex Ponce & Guyama RR No. 7, Puerto Rico (WDT 40 ton type, GM/Twin Disc, to be rebuilt to Allison in 1997);
• P&G 6wDH No. 20 Plymouth 5719 of 1954, by 1997 ex Ponce & Guyama RR No. 20, Puerto Rico (WDT 40 ton type, GM/Twin Disc, to be rebuilt to Allison 1997).
• ICC 6wDH No. 12 - assumed, not reported, possibly a renumbering of a P&G RR loco 
• ICC 6wDH No. 13 Plymouth (WDT type) - probably second hand, identity not known

Note - the Plymouth list shows 6399-6401 as identical and ex-works same day but 6400-01 shown as for "CA de Inverinmo", Dominican Republic 

Note - The WDT type are 30/40 ton whereas the TWDT type have additional ballast weights and are 45 ton.

The four imports from Puerto Rico had to be regauged from metre gauge. We were told that all four, as well as Davenport No. 1 had been scrapped.

Only eight 6wDH Plymouth diesels remain, of which six are operating:

• ICC-2 under repair, normally allocated to the field lines beyond Copeyito;
• ICC-3 dumped outside Copeyito works;
• ICC-4 under repair, normally allocated to the field lines beyond Copeyito;
• ICC-5 dumped outside Copeyito works;
• ICC-6 in use, ICC yard shunter;
• ICC-7 in use / under repair, for main line use between Copeyito and ICC;
• ICC-9 in use, for main line use between Copeyito and ICC;
• ICC-13 in use, for main line use between Copeyito and ICC.

Locos No. 7 & 9 were said to be the heaviest locos with the largest engines. No. 13 has a replacement Cummins engine, the identity is unknown.

There are two track maintenance crews. The crew responsible for Section 1 (ICC – Copeyito) has four-wheel motor trolley (“Motor de Via”) No. 24 (Mitsubishi engine) as well two hand-pump trolleys. The crew in charge of Section 2 (field lines beyond Copeyito) has motor trolley No. 23 (Fairmont?) and five hand-pump trolleys.

The mill

6 at work:

7 at work

9 at work

13 at work:

Track car 24