PIERRE, S.D. (KELO) — One of the railroads that operates on a South Dakota-owned line has temporarily shut down traffic because of wet weather in recent weeks.

It’s not the only one affected, according to a state Department of Transportation official.

Jack Dokken is manager of the air, rail and transit office. He said Dakota Southern Railway’s difficulties on the route west of Mitchell have become a common theme for many of South Dakota’s carriers.

Others challenged by two blizzards and heavy rains in the past month include:

The Dakota and Iowa Railroad that’s faced flooding in the southeast.

The Burlington Northern Santa Fe and the Rapid City, Pierre and Eastern that have struggled through more and more soft spots.

And the Dakota, Minnesota Valley and Western Railroad has seen difficulty in the northeast.

Heath Haden talked to state Railroad Board members at their meeting Wednesday. The vice president of operations for Dakota Southern said the track from Mitchell to Chamberlain isn’t safe to run right now.

The railroad has postponed several trains, he said.

West of the Missouri River hasn’t been a problem, in part because of different soil, but “East River, it just seems to be hit and miss,” Haden said. “There’s no rhyme or reason.”

Board members Jerry Cope of Rapid City and Gary Doehring of Cavour joined several others including Dokken recently to see conditions along the Mitchell-Rapid City line.

Haden said their trip was before the storm in early April that delivered an inch of rain in the southern counties and piled 18 to 20 inches of snow in many spots, bringing much of South Dakota to a halt for several days.

He said Burlington Northern Santa Fe has been running a pilot ahead of trains that are traveling slowly at 10 miles per hour.

Along the MRC line, there are 20 to 25 miles of spots that need attention, according to Haden.

“It’s not like you dig out a little area and it’s fixed,” he said.

One of the people at the meeting was Alex Huff, a past owner of the Dakota Southern. Huff, now retired, said he told shippers for “25 years” that he wouldn’t run trains while frost was coming out.

Haden said that’s no longer an option with several grain-loading facilities now on the MRC line.