Ingolstadt railway accident
The railway accident in Ingolstadt was a rear-end collision between two freight trains between the Ingolstadt Nord and Ingolstadt Hbf stations on March 2, 1972, which led to a major fire and killed three people.
Starting position
Three trains were involved in the accident:
- For a number of tank cars used in the Shell - Refinery in Ingolstadt with heating oil , gasoline and LPG had been refueled, which was übergabegüterzug Üg 18263 formed. In the end, the train signal was missing , as open fires and therefore also kerosene lamps were not permitted on the premises of the refinery for reasons of fire protection . After the train left the refinery premises, it was forgotten to retrofit the tail lights. The train was approaching Ingolstadt's main station from the north, but was unable to enter and stopped in front of the entry signal .
- In Ingolstadt Nord station , the through freight train Dg 6563 was waiting for the exit in the direction of Ingolstadt Hauptbahnhof to be released before the exit signal there .
- A railcar coming from Donauwörth at the same time and arriving via the Ingolstadt – Neuoffingen railway line to Ingolstadt Hauptbahnhof had caused a malfunction in an axle counter .
Accident
In order to remedy the malfunction, the dispatcher at Ingolstadt Hauptbahnhof had to manually intervene in the train protection system . He made a mistake: Instead of canceling the block on the Donauwörth route, he mistakenly did so for the block from the north of Ingolstadt . Thereupon the Dg 6563 received the signal "Drive free", drove on in the direction of Ingolstadt Hauptbahnhof and a little later collided with the end of the stationary boiler train at a speed of 60 km / h. The engine driver was trapped in the driver's cab on impact and burned. 14 of the tank wagons derailed, some fell down an embankment, nine caught fire or exploded. In total, over 175 tons of spilled refinery products were burned. A wagon derailed, was pushed into a former station keeper's house and exploded there with a 100 m high flame. Two people died there.
consequences
There was considerable damage in the area: a derailing vehicle destroyed a school for guide dogs . Several cars were set on fire by oil that flowed into the sewer system and spread while burning.
The salvage work was difficult. The neighboring district had to be evacuated . In addition to the volunteer fire brigades from Ingolstadt and the surrounding area, plant fire brigades from large companies were also called in, as well as forces from the technical relief organization and the German armed forces .
A few hours after the accident, the dispatcher who triggered the accident took his own life.
Web links
- Wall of flames from tank wagons . In: Donaukurier v. March 1, 2012.
- Josef Schweiger: 50 years of the works fire brigade under the sign of the four rings: From Auto Union to AUDI .
- Train accident with subsequent fire on March 2nd, 1972 - report and pictures of the accident
Coordinates: 48 ° 45 ′ 32.3 " N , 11 ° 26 ′ 11.7" E