ARR 570 on the shop tracks in Anchorage Yard. Alan Miller, September 28, 1981. Original slide purchased from ebay. Michael J. Gerenday collection.

A rare image of a rare locomotive. 570 was the EMD version of the MRS-1, a type of road switcher intended for the United States military. The MRS1 was built so it could be used on European railroads and had gauge conversion trucks. Only 13 EMD versions were built, while ALCO built 83 versions.

570 was originally U.S. Army 1814, then it was transferred to the U.S. Navy and numbered 65-00570. The ARR purchased it and four other EMD MRS-1 locomotives. 570 was renumbered to 1714 sometime possibly in the early 1980s and had large balloon spark arrestors.

Known as the Screaming Yellow Zonker, 1714 was the second EMD MRS-1 that was actually used by the ARR. The other unit of the class was 1718, which is in the Museum of Alaska Transportation and Industry in Wasilla. 1718 was the only one out of the five units to be painted in a one-off version of the Bold Alaska Scheme and is the sole surviving EMD MRS-1. There are images of 1714 used in work train service. 1718 was used as the switcher for the coal yards of Clear Air Force Base as well as on the U.S.A.F Command train.