Murulla railway accident
In the railway accident Murulla ran away from the intersection Murulla at Murrurundi , New South Wales , Australia , on September 13, 1926 freight cars in a slope and came with an oncoming express train together. 26 people died.
Starting position
The crossing point Murulla was on the then single-track North Railway (Main North Railway Line) of the New South Wales Government Railways , the only railway line that then connected Sydney and Brisbane . The route was secured with the token system . The crossing point Murulla had only one other track for train crossings in addition to the main track .
In a southerly direction - towards Sydney - the freight train No. 62, 290 meters long, fully equipped with Westinghouse brakes and provided with a freight train escort car. Coming from the south, freight train No. 95 had already entered Murulla to wait for the return train. No. 62 slowed down to exchange the tokens. When that was done, the engine driver accelerated again.
the accident
This acceleration led to a broken clutch on the twelfth last car. The brake hoses came loose and the train came to a stop. The separated part consisted of 12 cars and was about 100 meters long. Since all of this happened within the overtaking track, train no. 95 was now able to leave. The staff of train no. 62 secured the separated cars with their handbrake .
Contrary to the regulations, there was no spare part for the clutch in the escort vehicle . The train crew therefore tried to establish a provisional connection. After multiple attempts to bring the main part up to the separated wagons, the accompanying wagon, which was coupled at the end, finally stood on the other side of the switch . Finally, instead of the broken coupling, it was possible to connect the cars with a wire rope - but in this condition the brake lines could no longer be connected. The signal box now requested that the train be pulled back onto the overtaking track, as express train No. 8 was approaching from the north to Sydney. The brakeman then released the hand brakes on the freight cars and the engine driver pulled the train forward. The temporary connection broke. Now, however, the wagons already standing on the slope pulled all 12 loose wagons after them, rolled towards the express train, which was coming up the slope at around 50 km / h, and collided with it. A freight car loaded with wool overturned on impact and landed on the roof of the second car of the express train, where most of the people were killed. The wool and the wagon caught fire, but could be prevented from spreading further.
consequences
26 people died. The coroner determined that the engine driver and train driver had behaved in a criminal manner . The conviction in the criminal proceedings then failed due to formalities: Both were acquitted.
This was the most momentous rail accident in Australia until the Granville rail accident in 1977.
literature
- John Gunn: Along Parallel Lines - A History of the Railways of New South Wales . 1850 to 1986. Melbourne University Press 1989. ISBN 0-522-84387-5
- Kenn Pearce: Australian Railway Disasters . Davidson. ISBN 0-908876-09-2
- Peter WB Semmens: Disasters on the rails. A worldwide documentation. Transpress, Stuttgart 1996, ISBN 3-344-71030-3 .
- CC Singleton: The Murulla Accident . In: Australian Railway Historical Society Bulletin. June 1962, pp. 89f.
Remarks
- ↑ After the opening of the east running "Coast Line" also called "Northwest Railway Line".
- ↑ Gunn, p. 38, gives 27 deaths.