Railway accident near Schwegenheim

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Accident site

The railway accident near Schwegenheim occurred on May 25, 1905 near Schwegenheim on the Speyer – Neustadt local railway, which was then under construction . The engine driver was killed.

Starting position

Around 1899, after decades of planning, it was decided to build a narrow-gauge local railway from Speyer to Neustadt . This should lead via Schwegenheim, Weingarten , Freisbach and Gommersheim , among others . The Speyer – Geinsheim section was to be opened in 1905. The route was very winding, because as many places in the region as possible were connected and the meadows and agricultural areas were to be avoided. Among other things, this route created a tight curve at the edge of the forest around 300 meters in front of Schwegenheim station.

the accident

At 5.15 a.m., a material train left the Speyer local train station with the destination Gommersheim. Two cars contained gravel , there was also a passenger car with about 40 workers who drove to their construction site on the route, and six cars with other materials such as railway sleepers . About a quarter of an hour later the train reached the said curve. The engine driver braked very sharply, whereupon the first car derailed . The locomotive and also the second car were pushed out of the curve to the left. The engine driver got under the locomotive.

consequences

The engine driver died and a worker suffered a broken arm. At 9 o'clock a relief train arrived for cleanup work. In the further course of the day the accident site attracted many onlookers.

One report spoke of a broken rail. However, this turned out to be incorrect.

literature

  • Hans-Ulrich Kroszewski: The story of the "peppermint bail " . The Gäubahn Neustadt – Gommersheim – Speyer. Contemporary witnesses remember. Hekma-Verlag, Maikammer 2009, ISBN 978-3-9808288-5-7 , p. 57-58 and pp. 201-203 .

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c Hans-Ulrich Kroszewski: The story of the "peppermint train". The Gäubahn Neustadt - Gommersheim - Speyer. Contemporary witnesses remember . 2009, p. 57 .
  2. ↑ Hans-Ulrich Kroszewski: The story of the “peppermint train”. The Gäubahn Neustadt - Gommersheim - Speyer. Contemporary witnesses remember . 2009, p. 202 .
  3. ↑ Hans-Ulrich Kroszewski: The story of the “peppermint train”. The Gäubahn Neustadt - Gommersheim - Speyer. Contemporary witnesses remember . 2009, p. 57 f .