Say a prayer for those who passed and those that were left behind The Granville rail disaster occurred on this day, on 18 January 1977 at Granville, a suburb in Western Sydney, Australia, when a crowded commuter train derailed, running into the supports of a road bridge that collapsed onto two of the trains passenger carriages. It was the worst rail disaster in Australian history: 83 people died, more than 210 were injured, and 1,300 were affected. The crowded 6:09 a.m. from Mount Victoria, in the Blue Mountains, Sydney-bound eight carriage commuter train was hauled by a New South Wales 46 class locomotive, No. 4620. It was approaching Granville railway station when it left the rails at approximately 8:10 a.m. and hit a row of supports of the overhead Bold Street bridge, which were constructed from steel and concrete. The derailed engine and first two carriages passed the bridge. The first carriage broke free from the other carriages. Carriage one was torn open when it collided with a severed mast beside the track, killing eight passengers. The remaining carriages ground to a halt, with the second carriage clear of the bridge. The rear half of the third carriage, and forward half of the fourth carriage came to rest under the weakened bridge. Within seconds, with all its supports demolished, the bridge and several motor cars on top of it crashed onto the carriages, crushing them and the passengers inside. The weight of the concrete bridge was estimated at 570 tonnes (630 tons). Of the total number of passengers travelling in the third and fourth carriages, half were killed instantly when the bridge collapsed on them, crushing them in their seats. Several injured passengers were trapped in the train for hours after the accident, with part of the bridge crushing a limb or torso. Some had been conscious and lucid, talking to rescuers, but died of crush syndrome soon after the weight was removed from their bodies. This resulted in changes to rescue procedures for these kinds of accidents. Another danger came from gas; large gas cylinders were kept year-round on board the train to be used in winter for heating.Several people were overcome by gas leaking from ruptured cylinders. The leaking gas also prevented the immediate use of powered rescue tools. The NSW Fire Brigade provided ventilation equipment to dispel the gas and a constant film of water was sprayed over the accident site to prevent the possibility of the gas igniting. The train driver, the assistant crewman, the second man, and the motorists driving on the fallen bridge all survived. The operation lasted from 8:12am Tuesday until 6:00am Thursday. Ultimately, 83 people were killed in the accident.
Posted on: Mon, 19 Jan 2015 04:52:32 +0000
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