Moimenta-Alcafache railway accident
In the railway accident Moimenta-Alcafache near encountered the same breakpoint in the municipality Moimenta de Maceira Dão -Mangualde, Portugal , September 11, 1985, two trains of the Portuguese Railway (CP) head-on. At least 113 people died. This was the most momentous railway accident in the history of Portugal .
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Starting position
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The Linha da Beira Alta runs on a single track between the Nelas and Mangualde stations . The Moimenta-Alcafache stop is here . The route had no train protection by signals here . Safety was only guaranteed by telephone train reports between the block units and with the train control center .
Here two trains ran in opposite directions that evening: the express train No. 315, the Süd-Express , from Lisbon Santa Apolónia to Paris , pulled by the 1961 locomotive with 12 passenger cars and the passenger train No. 1324 from Guarda to Coimbra , pulled by the locomotive 1439 with 6 or 7 cars. About 460 passengers traveled with them . The scheduled crossing of the trains was planned at Mangualde station. The express train, however, was 17 minutes late .
the accident
Although the express train was given priority and without reassurance whether the route was actually free, the passenger train drove into the section to Nelas in order to make the upcoming train crossing there due to the delay of the express train. According to regulations, the dispatchers at both stations should have agreed and agreed to move the train crossing with the train control center in Coimbra. None of this happened.
The express train had meanwhile caught up with part of its delay. The dispatcher in Nelas was not informed of the oncoming passenger train and therefore also allowed the express train to enter the section of the route. Only then did he inform the Moimenta-Alcafache stop to find out from there that the passenger train to Nelas had just left there. A gatekeeper who was working in between was asked to stop the train with a red flag or with popping capsules . But it was too late: the train had already passed the place. At 18:37, the trains collided with each other at a speed of around 100 km / h. The two locomotives and the cars that followed them were badly damaged and caught fire. Since the wagons were not made of refractory material, the fire could quickly spread. Some of the passengers were trapped or trapped and burned.
consequences
49 dead were recovered, but only 14 of them were identified. 64 other travelers have been missing since the accident, so they were probably killed and burned so badly that no remains were found. The exact number of deaths could never be determined. Another 145 people were injured.
Members of the Guarda Nacional Republicana who were conducting an exercise nearby were the first to arrive at the scene of the accident and alerted the rescue workers, who arrived so quickly. However, the train and the surrounding forest were already on fire.
The unidentified human remains were buried on September 13, 1985 in a communal grave near the accident site. A memorial was also set up here.
The accident was the reason to equip the line with train control .
Web links
- NN: Alcafache: O maior acidente ferroviário recordado 24 anos depois . In: Expresso v. September 10, 2009.
Remarks
- ↑ At least 49 dead were rescued, an additional 64 people are missing.
Coordinates: 40 ° 34'56.2 " N , 7 ° 46'53.7" W.