Elliot Junction rail accident

The railway accident at Elliot Junction on 28 December 1906 was the collision of an empty express train set, which ascended in adverse winter weather and snow conditions with just under 50 km / h Elliot Junction railway station on a passenger train waiting there.

Conditions

Elliot Junction, Angus, was a railway station on the route Edinburgh - Dundee in Scotland, lying between the present-day train stations Carnoustie and Arbroath. Day of the accident there was extremely bad weather with snow flurries. The express train of the North British Railway came to Dundee at 07:35 clock in Arbroath and had to end his ride as the track in the further course was blocked by snow drifts there. To return the stranded passengers, a passenger train was in Arbroath from Dundee and Arbroath Railway compiled which left at 15:00 clock there, and arrived at 15:19 clock in Elliot Junction. Due to the snow load, the telegraph lines were torn, and thus interrupted the communication between Elliot Junction and East Haven. Trains on this section were only allowed to run if the station master of Elliot Junction was as a "guide " on the train. Therefore, the passenger in Elliot Junction had to wait for the pilot.

Meanwhile, the express train set had also begun the return journey at 15:15 clock. As in Arbroath the hub was frozen, drove the locomotive - illegally - with the Tender advance what the distance observation difficult. Since weather conditions by now, most signal systems had failed, the train also wrong to view.

Circumstances of the accident

The empty train went despite the poor visibility about 75 km / h The reconstruction of events showed that possibly something had been pushed out of its horizontal position down the signal arm of the entry signal of Elliot Junction through the snow. The signal arm in a horizontal position commanded "Halt", a down signal arms meant " ride free". The engineer believed, therefore, to see the signal to the driving position and drove past the signal covered the waiting passenger train at the station. The locomotive of the express train rammed into unbraked the end of the waiting in the station passenger train derailed, overturned and smashed its last three cars.

Follow

22 people died and eight were seriously injured and 22 slightly. All the victims - except the heater on the express train locomotive - were in the three smashed cars. One of the members of parliament Alexander William Black was brought in with the accident of the Liberal Party.

The primary cause of the accident careless driving of the engine driver of the express train set was determined. This was contrary to the instructions he had received in Arbroath railway station, traded. These included that stop on each route station and was generally slow to drive. The investigation report emphasizes that both the engineer that happened " stop" pointing the pre-and the main signal before Elliot Junction. In addition, alcohol may have been in the game. The engineer was sentenced to a prison term, but which was suspended because of the special circumstances on probation.