List of rail accidents
Encyclopedia
This is a list of rail accidents from 2000 to 2009. The list includes some terrorist bombings
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Improvised explosive device
An improvised explosive device , also known as a roadside bomb, is a homemade bomb constructed and deployed in ways other than in conventional military action...
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| Notable train Train A train is a connected series of vehicles for rail transport that move along a track to transport cargo or passengers from one place to another place. The track usually consists of two rails, but might also be a monorail or maglev guideway.Propulsion for the train is provided by a separate... accidents, 2000–2009 |
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| 2000s: | 2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 |
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2000
- January 4, 2000 – Åsta accidentÅsta accidentThe Åsta accident was a railway accident that occurred at 13:12:25 on 4 January 2000 at Åsta in Åmot, south of Rena in Østerdalen, Norway. A train from Trondheim collided with a local train from Hamar on Rørosbanen resulting in an explosive fire...
, ÅstaÅstaÅsta is a village in Åmot municipality, Norway. It is located seven kilometres south of the municipality centre Rena in close proximity to the Glomma river....
in ÅmotÅmotÅmot is a municipality in Hedmark county, Norway. It is part of the traditional region of Østerdalen. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Rena...
, Norway: Two diesel passenger trains collide on the RørosbanenRørosbanenThe Røros Line is a long railway line in Norway running between the towns of Hamar and Støren via Elverum and Røros. It connects to the Dovre Line at Hamar to Oslo and at Støren to Trondheim. The narrow gauge line was opened in 1877, running between Hamar and Trondheim, a total of...
killing 19. The fire after the collision lasts nearly six hours. - February 6, 2000 – BrühlBrühl, North Rhine-WestphaliaBrühl is a town in the Rhineland of Germany. It is located in Rhein-Erft-Kreis, 20 km south of Cologne city center and at the edge of Naturpark Kottenforst-Ville Nature Reserve.-History:...
, Germany: An express night train from Amsterdam to Basel passes a construction area at excess speed and derails at Brühl stationBrühl stationBrühl station is a train station in the city of Brühl in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia. It consists of a passenger station and a freight yard about a kilometre to the north...
on the main line between Cologne and Bonn, crashing into a nearby house. Nine people die. - March 2, 2000 – Kølkær, Denmark: Two regional trains collide head-onHead-on collisionA head-on collision is one where the front ends of two ships, trains, planes or vehicles hit each other, as opposed to a side collision or rear-end collision.-Rail transport:...
after one passes a red signal. Three people die and 39 are injured. - March 8, 2000 – Naka-Meguro train disaster, Japan: A Tokyo SubwayTokyo SubwayThe is an integral part of the world's most extensive rapid transit system in a single metropolitan area, Greater Tokyo. While the subway system itself is largely within the city center, the lines extend far out via extensive through services onto suburban railway lines.- Networks :As of June...
train derails and is hit by another train on the next track; Five people die and 63 are injured. - April 5, 2000 – LillestrømLillestrøm' is a city in the municipality of Skedsmo, Akershus, Norway. The municipal administration is located in Lillestrøm.Facilities in Lillestrøm include hotels, Norway trade fairs, a brand new cinema, a mall, Lillestrøm torv, restaurants, a high speed commuter train that reaches both Oslo and...
in SkedsmoSkedsmoSkedsmo is a municipality in Akershus county, Norway. It is part of the traditional region of Romerike. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Lillestrøm. About one third of the municipal population lives in Lillestrøm. Other important towns are Skedsmokorset, Skjetten and...
, Norway: A freight train's brakes fail between StrømmenStrømmenStrømmen is a town in Skedsmo, Akershus, Norway. It is about twenty kilometers east of Oslo, and considered part of Greater Oslo. It has around 8,000 residents....
and Lillestrøm; it collides with a stationary freight train at Lillestrøm station. Two gas wagonsTank carA tank car is a type of railroad rolling stock designed to transport liquid and gaseous commodities.-Timeline:...
loaded with propanePropanePropane is a three-carbon alkane with the molecular formula , normally a gas, but compressible to a transportable liquid. A by-product of natural gas processing and petroleum refining, it is commonly used as a fuel for engines, oxy-gas torches, barbecues, portable stoves, and residential central...
catch fire and 2000 people are evacuated in fear of a boiling liquid expanding vapor explosionBLEVEA boiling liquid expanding vapor explosion occurs when a vessel containing a pressurized liquid above its boiling point ruptures.-Mechanism:...
(BLEVE); there are not any casualties. - June 6, 2000 – A bomb explodes on a train in Bathinda, killing two people and injuring one.
- June 28, 2000 – 13 children die after a goods train they were riding on derails in PadangPadang, IndonesiaPadang is the capital and largest city of West Sumatra, Indonesia. It is located on the western coast of Sumatra at . It has an area of and a population of over 833,000 people at the 2010 Census.-History:...
. As a result the Indonesian government cracks down on passengers clinging onto the sides of freight trains as a means of free travel. (Source- BBC) - July 28, 2000 – At 21:15, a composition of the series 1700 (No 145) from Jaraguá to Francisco Morato parked at Perus station is struck by another empty composition of the series 1700 (No 127) that lost brakes on a stretch of descent, traveling 5.5 kilometres (3.4 mi) in eight minutes. The accident leaves nine people dead and 115 injured; and destroys the Perus station.
- August 15, 2000 – According to a Kenya Broadcasting CorporationKenya Broadcasting CorporationKenya Broadcasting Corporation is the state-run media organization of Kenya. It broadcasts in both English and Swahili, as well as in most local languages of Kenya. The corporation started its life in 1928 when Kenya was a British colony. In 1964, when Kenya became an independent country, the...
report, a ButereButereButere is a town in the Western Province of Kenya. It has an urban population of 8636 The town is the capital of Butere District formerly Butere/Mumias District.-Transportation Links:...
–KisumuKisumuKisumu is a port city in western Kenya at , with a population of 355,024 . It is the third largest city in Kenya, the principal city of western Kenya, the immediate former capital of Nyanza Province and the headquarters of Kisumu County. It has a municipal charter but no city charter...
commuter train carrying 400 passengers derails on the shoreline of Lake VictoriaLake VictoriaLake Victoria is one of the African Great Lakes. The lake was named for Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom, by John Hanning Speke, the first European to discover this lake....
, LelaLelaLeľa is a village and municipality in the Nové Zámky District in the Nitra Region of south-west Slovakia.-Geography:The village lies at an altitude of 124 metres and covers an area of 8.24 km². It has a population of about 400 people....
, NyanzaNyanza ProvinceNyanza Province of Kenya, is one of Kenya's eight administrative provinces. It is located in the southwest part of Kenya around Lake Victoria. Nyanza includes part of the eastern edge of Lake Victoria and is inhabited predominantly by the Luo. There are also Bantu-speaking tribes such as the...
, KenyaKenyaKenya , officially known as the Republic of Kenya, is a country in East Africa that lies on the equator, with the Indian Ocean to its south-east...
, in an incident caused by brake failure, killing 13 people; another 36 are injured. - August 17, 2000 – six die in KisumuKisumuKisumu is a port city in western Kenya at , with a population of 355,024 . It is the third largest city in Kenya, the principal city of western Kenya, the immediate former capital of Nyanza Province and the headquarters of Kisumu County. It has a municipal charter but no city charter...
after a freight train hits a packed bus on a busy level crossing during the morning rush hour. - August 19, 2000 – According to a Kenya Television NetworkKenya Television NetworkKenya Television Network is the leading television station in Kenya with its headquarters at the I & M Towers in downtown Nairobi. Its headquarters will change later on in the year as it moves in with its parent company's other subsidiaries at the newly-built Standard Group Centre on Mombasa road...
report, a MombasaMombasaMombasa is the second-largest city in Kenya. Lying next to the Indian Ocean, it has a major port and an international airport. The city also serves as the centre of the coastal tourism industry....
–NairobiNairobiNairobi is the capital and largest city of Kenya. The city and its surrounding area also forms the Nairobi County. The name "Nairobi" comes from the Maasai phrase Enkare Nyirobi, which translates to "the place of cool waters". However, it is popularly known as the "Green City in the Sun" and is...
freight train with liquefied gas explodes and catches fire at Mavoko, Eastern, KenyaKenyaKenya , officially known as the Republic of Kenya, is a country in East Africa that lies on the equator, with the Indian Ocean to its south-east...
, killing 25 people and injuring 50; most of the dead and injured are residents of houses near the railroad line. - August 26, 2000 - a Dakota, Minnesota, and Eastern train bound for Central South Dakota was derailed in Brookings, South DakotaBrookings, South DakotaBrookings is a city in Brookings County, South Dakota, United States. Brookings is the fourth largest city in South Dakota, with a population of 22,056 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Brookings County, and home to South Dakota State University, the largest institution of higher...
killing the conductor and severely injuring the engineer. The accident was caused intentionally. The suspect called it a 'prank.' - October 17, 2000 – Hatfield rail crashHatfield rail crashThe Hatfield rail crash was a railway accident on 17 October 2000, at Hatfield, Hertfordshire, UK. Although the accident killed fewer than other accidents, Hatfield exposed the major stewardship shortcomings of the privatised national railway infrastructure company Railtrack and the failings of...
, Hertfordshire, England, United Kingdom: As the London–LeedsLeedsLeeds is a city and metropolitan borough in West Yorkshire, England. In 2001 Leeds' main urban subdivision had a population of 443,247, while the entire city has a population of 798,800 , making it the 30th-most populous city in the European Union.Leeds is the cultural, financial and commercial...
express passes at 115 miles per hour (51 m/s), a faulty rail shatters into 300 pieces because of a condition known as rolling contact fatigue. Four people are killed and 102 are injured. This rail failure forces the biggest and most expensive re-railing exercise in British history, with huge service disruption for many months. Operator RailtrackRailtrackRailtrack was a group of companies that owned the track, signalling, tunnels, bridges, level crossings and all but a handful of the stations of the British railway system from its formation in April 1994 until 2002...
is found guilty in one of the longest rail-related trials in UK legal history, but manslaughter charges against company managers are not sustained. - November 11, 2000 – Kaprun disasterKaprun disasterThe Kaprun disaster was a fire that occurred in an ascending railway car in the tunnel of the Gletscherbahn 2 railway in Kaprun, Austria, on 11 November 2000. The disaster claimed the lives of 155 people, leaving 12 survivors from the burning car...
, Austria: A funicularFunicularA funicular, also known as an inclined plane or cliff railway, is a cable railway in which a cable attached to a pair of tram-like vehicles on rails moves them up and down a steep slope; the ascending and descending vehicles counterbalance each other.-Operation:The basic principle of funicular...
train catches fire in a tunnel because of an unsafely–installed heater. 155 die. - December 2, 2000 – Sarai Banjara rail disaster, a crowded commuter train crashes into a derailed freight train in PunjabPunjab (India)Punjab ) is a state in the northwest of the Republic of India, forming part of the larger Punjab region. The state is bordered by the Indian states of Himachal Pradesh to the east, Haryana to the south and southeast and Rajasthan to the southwest as well as the Pakistani province of Punjab to the...
. More than 45 people die. - December 30, 2000 - Rizal Day bombingsRizal Day bombingsThe Rizal Day bombings, also referred to as the December 30 bombings, were a series of bombings that occurred around Metro Manila in the Philippines on December 30, 2000. The explosions occurred in close succession within a span of a few hours...
, PhilippinesPhilippinesThe Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
: A bomb explodes on a Manila Light Rail Transit SystemManila Light Rail Transit SystemThe Manila Light Rail Transit System, popularly known as the LRT, is a metropolitan rail system serving the Metro Manila area in the Philippines. Although referred to as a light rail system because it originally used light rail vehicles, it has many characteristics of a rapid transit system, such...
train during a terrorist attack near BlumentrittBlumentritt LRT StationBlumentritt LRT Station is a station on the Manila LRT Yellow Line . Like all other LRT-1 stations, Blumentritt station is above-ground. The station serves Sampaloc in Manila. The station itself is located near Blumentritt Street, which the station was named after...
station. 22 people die and hundreds are injured.
2001
- January 12, 2001 – Nvoungouti, CongoRepublic of the CongoThe Republic of the Congo , sometimes known locally as Congo-Brazzaville, is a state in Central Africa. It is bordered by Gabon, Cameroon, the Central African Republic, the Democratic Republic of the Congo , the Angolan exclave province of Cabinda, and the Gulf of Guinea.The region was dominated by...
: More than 30 people die when two trains collide because of a brake failure at Nvoungouti. - February 7, 2001 – Toronto, Ontario: Ontario Northland RailwayOntario Northland RailwayThe Ontario Northland Railway is a Canadian railway operated by the Ontario Northland Transportation Commission, a provincial Crown agency of the government of Ontario....
's NorthlanderNorthlanderThe Northlander is a Canadian passenger train operated by the Ontario Northland Railway in Ontario.It operates 6 days per week year-round in both directions and connects Cochrane with Toronto...
passenger train derails in the Don Valley near the Bayview ExtensionBayview AvenueBayview Avenue is a major north-south route in the Greater Toronto Area of Ontario. North of Toronto, in York Region, Bayview is also designated as York Regional Road 34.-History:...
and Pottery Road area. 2 of the 23 passengers are injured slightly. - February 28, 2001 – Selby rail crashSelby rail crashThe Great Heck rail crash, widely known as the Selby rail crash, was a high-speed train accident that occurred at Great Heck near Selby, North Yorkshire, England on the morning of 28 February 2001...
, Great HeckGreat HeckGreat Heck is a small village that lies a few miles south of Selby, North Yorkshire, England.The village achieved notoriety due to the Great Heck rail crash.-External links:...
, North YorkshireNorth YorkshireNorth Yorkshire is a non-metropolitan or shire county located in the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England, and a ceremonial county primarily in that region but partly in North East England. Created in 1974 by the Local Government Act 1972 it covers an area of , making it the largest...
, England, United Kingdom: a driver on England's M62 motorwayM62 motorwayThe M62 motorway is a west–east trans-Pennine motorway in Northern England, connecting the cities of Liverpool and Hull via Manchester and Leeds. The road also forms part of the unsigned Euroroutes E20 and E22...
falls asleep at the wheel and runs off the road, landing on railway tracks; he escapes, and his vehicle is hit by a passenger train, which derails and hits a coal train traveling in the opposite direction. 10 people die, over 80 are injured. The car driver is later jailed for causing death by dangerous driving. - March 27, 2001 – Pécrot rail crashPécrot rail crashThe Pécrot rail crash was a rail accident in the village of Pécrot , Belgium, that occurred on 27 March 2001 when two passenger trains collided head-on...
, Pécrot, Belgium: Two passenger trains collide on the same track. 8 people die and 12 are injured. Lack of common language a factor. - April 12, 2001 – Stewiacke, Nova ScotiaStewiacke, Nova Scotia-External links:* *...
, Canada: a teenager tampers with a track switch, derailing Via Rail Canada's Ocean. Many are injured in the resulting crash. - May 15, 2001 – CSX 8888 incidentCSX 8888 incidentThe CSX 8888 incident, also known as the Crazy Eights incident, involved an unmanned runaway train led by CSX Transportation locomotive #8888, an EMD SD40-2, that was pulling a freight train consisting of 47 cars, some of them loaded with hazardous chemicals. The train ran uncontrolled for two...
, Toledo, OhioToledo, OhioToledo is the fourth most populous city in the U.S. state of Ohio and is the county seat of Lucas County. Toledo is in northwest Ohio, on the western end of Lake Erie, and borders the State of Michigan...
, United States: A CSX freight train of 47 cars, including some with hazardous molten phenol acidPhenolPhenol, also known as carbolic acid, phenic acid, is an organic compound with the chemical formula C6H5OH. It is a white crystalline solid. The molecule consists of a phenyl , bonded to a hydroxyl group. It is produced on a large scale as a precursor to many materials and useful compounds...
, runs away in the yard at Toledo with no engineer aboard. The engineer had stepped out to reset a switch but had improperly applied the dynamic brake. It runs for 66 miles (106 km) to Kenton, OhioKenton, OhioKenton is a city in and the county seat of Hardin County, Ohio, United States, along the Scioto River. The population was 8,262 at the 2010 census. It is named for Kentucky/Ohio frontiersman, Simon Kenton...
before being stopped by a railroad worker who jumps aboard and manages to stop it. CSX had slowed the train down to 10 mph (4.5 m/s) by coupling an engine onto the end. This incident was dubbed the "Crazy Eights" incident in reference to the lead locomotive's number (#8888). The incident inspired the Tony ScottTony ScottAnthony D. L. "Tony" Scott is an English film director. His films include Top Gun, Beverly Hills Cop II, The Last Boy Scout, True Romance, Crimson Tide, Enemy of the State, Spy Game, Man on Fire, Déjà Vu, The Taking of Pelham 123, and Unstoppable...
film UnstoppableUnstoppable (2010 film)Unstoppable is a 2010 American action thriller film directed by Tony Scott, written by Mark Bomback, and starring Denzel Washington and Chris Pine. The film tells the story of a runaway freight train, and the two men who attempt to stop it.The film was released in the United States and Canada on...
, starring Denzel WashingtonDenzel WashingtonDenzel Hayes Washington Jr. is an American actor, screenwriter, director, and film producer. He first rose to prominence when he joined the cast of the medical drama, St. Elsewhere, playing Dr...
and Chris PineChris PineChristopher Whitelaw "Chris" Pine is an American actor. He has appeared in the romantic comedies The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement and Just My Luck , as well as the action films Smokin' Aces and Unstoppable . In 2009, he portrayed James T...
. - June 21, 2001 – Kadalundi River rail disaster, KeralaKeralaor Keralam is an Indian state located on the Malabar coast of south-west India. It was created on 1 November 1956 by the States Reorganisation Act by combining various Malayalam speaking regions....
, India: 57 people die. - July 18, 2001 – Howard Street Tunnel fire, Baltimore, Maryland, United States: A 60-car CSX train carrying chemicals and wood products derails in a 1.7 miles (2.7 km) tunnel under Baltimore, causing water contamination and a fire that burns for six days.
- August 19, 2001 – Kurunegala train crashKurunegala train crashThe Yattalgoda train crash was an accident on a Sri Lankan rail line near the town of Kurunegala on 19 August 2001.The Udarata Menike express passenger service from Badulla to Colombo Fort in Sri Lanka was a regular train route which ran on to Colombo...
, Sri LankaSri LankaSri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka is a country off the southern coast of the Indian subcontinent. Known until 1972 as Ceylon , Sri Lanka is an island surrounded by the Indian Ocean, the Gulf of Mannar and the Palk Strait, and lies in the vicinity of India and the...
: 13 people die when a train in Sri Lanka derails because of speeding and overcrowding. - September 2, 2001 – CirebonCirebonCirebon is a port city on the north coast of the Indonesian island of Java. It is located in the province of West Java near the provincial border with Central Java, approximately 297 km east of Jakarta, at .The seat of a former Sultanate, the city's West and Central Java border location have...
, IndonesiaIndonesiaIndonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
: A passenger train and a locomotive collide, killing 40 people and seriously injuring 37. - September 13, 2001 – Wendover, UtahWendover, UtahWendover is a city in Tooele County, Utah, United States. It is part of the Elko Micropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 1,537 at the 2000 census, with a 2006 estimated population of 1,632....
, United States: The westbound California ZephyrCalifornia ZephyrThe California Zephyr is a long passenger train route operated by Amtrak in the midwestern and western United States.It runs from Chicago, Illinois, in the east to Emeryville, California, in the west, passing through the states of Illinois, Iowa, Nebraska, Colorado, Utah, Nevada, and California...
derails after striking a coal train. There were no fatalities, but several injuries. - November 8, 2001 – Russia: A nuclear waste train from Bulgaria crashes at midnight between the Krasnoyarsk and Kemerovo on the Trans-Siberian railway. 14 of the 20 tanker-wagons derail and the line is closed for about 12 hours. One kilometre of track is damaged.
- December 18, 2001 – OrestiadaOrestiadaOrestiada is the northeasternmost and northernmost city of Greece and the second largest city of the Evros peripheral unit of Thrace. The population is around 25,000. Orestiada is only 2 km west of the banks of the Evros, which forms a natural border between Greece and Turkey...
, Greece: 1 human death results when a train becomes stuck in a snow drift and derails at the town of Orestiada, near the BulgariaBulgariaBulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...
n border. Temperatures fall to −20°CCelsiusCelsius is a scale and unit of measurement for temperature. It is named after the Swedish astronomer Anders Celsius , who developed a similar temperature scale two years before his death...
. - December 25, 2001 – A packed passenger train careens into a station just outside BerbesBerbesBerbes is one of nine parishes in Ribadesella, a municipality within the province and autonomous community of Asturias, in northern Spain.It is in size, with a population of 97 ....
, IndonesiaIndonesiaIndonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
and slams into a stationary train from JakartaJakartaJakarta is the capital and largest city of Indonesia. Officially known as the Special Capital Territory of Jakarta, it is located on the northwest coast of Java, has an area of , and a population of 9,580,000. Jakarta is the country's economic, cultural and political centre...
, killing 27 people and seriously wounding dozens according to the local authorities and Indonesian Red Cross.
2002
- January 21, 2002 – Minot train derailmentMinot Train DerailmentThe Minot Train Derailment occurred in Minot, North Dakota on 18 January 2002, when a Canadian Pacific Railway freight train derailed outside Minot, spilling hazardous materials.-Derailment:...
, Minot, North DakotaMinot, North DakotaMinot is a city located in north central North Dakota in the United States. It is most widely known for the Air Force base located approximately 15 miles north of the city. With a population of 40,888 at the 2010 census, Minot is the fourth largest city in the state...
, United States: A Canadian Pacific RailwayCanadian Pacific RailwayThe Canadian Pacific Railway , formerly also known as CP Rail between 1968 and 1996, is a historic Canadian Class I railway founded in 1881 and now operated by Canadian Pacific Railway Limited, which began operations as legal owner in a corporate restructuring in 2001...
train derails at 01:40 CST near a residential area west of Minot; the derailment results in a massive anhydrous ammonia leak. Seven of 15 tank carTank carA tank car is a type of railroad rolling stock designed to transport liquid and gaseous commodities.-Timeline:...
s rupture, releasing more than 750,000 liters (200,000 US gallonGallonThe gallon is a measure of volume. Historically it has had many different definitions, but there are three definitions in current use: the imperial gallon which is used in the United Kingdom and semi-officially within Canada, the United States liquid gallon and the lesser used United States dry...
s) of anhydrous ammonia which vaporizes in the sub-zero air, forming a toxic cloud that drifts over much of Minot. One man dies and numerous others are treated for chemical exposure. - February 6, 2002 – Charlotte's Dale train crashCharlotte's Dale train crashThe Charlotte's Dale train crash was the collision of a commuter train with a freight train in the town of Charlotte's Dale, 42 miles from Durban in South Africa on February 6, 2002....
, South Africa: Two commuter trains collide in Charlotte's Dale near DurbanDurbanDurban is the largest city in the South African province of KwaZulu-Natal and the third largest city in South Africa. It forms part of the eThekwini metropolitan municipality. Durban is famous for being the busiest port in South Africa. It is also seen as one of the major centres of tourism...
. 22 people die, including 16 children. - February 20, 2002 – Al Ayatt train disaster, EgyptEgyptEgypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
: A train packed to double capacity catches fire, 373 die. - March 30, 2002 – A Spanish high-speed express train on the Valencia–BarcelonaBarcelonaBarcelona is the second largest city in Spain after Madrid, and the capital of Catalonia, with a population of 1,621,537 within its administrative limits on a land area of...
route of the EuromedEuromed (train)Euromed is a high speed rail service which uses series 101 EMU rolling stock with bogies adapted for use on the 1,668mm Iberian gauge track. Traction current, supplied by overhead lines, can be either 3,000 volts, direct current or 25,000 volts, 50 Hz, alternating current...
collides head-onHead-on collisionA head-on collision is one where the front ends of two ships, trains, planes or vehicles hit each other, as opposed to a side collision or rear-end collision.-Rail transport:...
with the TortosaTortosa-External links:* *** * * *...
-Barcelona Catalunya express. Between both trains, 600 passengers were on board, five cars of the Euromed are damaged at TorredembarraTorredembarraTorredembarra is a small town in the comarca of the Tarragonès, in the province of Tarragona, Catalonia, Spain.- External links :***...
station, outskirts of TarragonaTarragonaTarragona is a city located in the south of Catalonia on the north-east of Spain, by the Mediterranean. It is the capital of the Spanish province of the same name and the capital of the Catalan comarca Tarragonès. In the medieval and modern times it was the capital of the Vegueria of Tarragona...
, Catalunya, Spain. At least four people die and another 88 are injured. - April 18, 2002 – Crescent City, FloridaCrescent City, FloridaCrescent City is a city in Putnam County, Florida, United States. The city is located on two lakes and is part of the Palatka Micropolitan Statistical Area. Crescent Lake lies to the east of town and Lake Stella is located to the west.-Geography:...
, United States: 21 cars of an AmtrakAmtrakThe National Railroad Passenger Corporation, doing business as Amtrak , is a government-owned corporation that was organized on May 1, 1971, to provide intercity passenger train service in the United States. "Amtrak" is a portmanteau of the words "America" and "track". It is headquartered at Union...
Auto-Train derail near Crescent City. Four human deaths, 142 injured. The National Transportation Safety BoardNational Transportation Safety BoardThe National Transportation Safety Board is an independent U.S. government investigative agency responsible for civil transportation accident investigation. In this role, the NTSB investigates and reports on aviation accidents and incidents, certain types of highway crashes, ship and marine...
initial accident report finds that the ECP brakes purchased for the train were not functioning: the final report determines that the accident was caused by a hot-weather "sun kinkSun kinkSun kink refers to a condition that can occur on hot days in rail tracks. The phenomenon is caused by what is properly termed as buckling.The buckling force in the track due to warming up is a function of the rise in temperature only and is independent of the track length: F = E A \alpha_L \Delta...
" misalignment of the track due to inadequate CSX maintenance-of-way, and stated that equipment and track damages totaled about $8.3 million. - April 23, 2002 – Placentia, CaliforniaPlacentia, California-Local: Placentia is a Charter city with an elected city council and professional city manager. Placentia City Council*Mayor- Scott W. Nelson*Mayor Pro Tem- Jeremy Yamaguchi*Council Member- Joe Aquirre*Council Member- Constance Underhill...
, United States: a BNSF Railway freight train collides head-onHead-on collisionA head-on collision is one where the front ends of two ships, trains, planes or vehicles hit each other, as opposed to a side collision or rear-end collision.-Rail transport:...
with a Metrolink trainMetrolink (Southern California)Metrolink is a commuter rail system serving Los Angeles and the surrounding area of Southern California; it currently consists of six lines and 55 stations using of track....
in Placentia, near the Atwood Junction, at the intersection of Orangethorpe Avenue and Van Buren Street. Two people die in the crash and twenty-two are seriously injured. - May 2, 2002 – Firdale, ManitobaManitobaManitoba is a Canadian prairie province with an area of . The province has over 110,000 lakes and has a largely continental climate because of its flat topography. Agriculture, mostly concentrated in the fertile southern and western parts of the province, is vital to the province's economy; other...
, Canada: An eastbound CNCanadian National RailwayThe Canadian National Railway Company is a Canadian Class I railway headquartered in Montreal, Quebec. CN's slogan is "North America's Railroad"....
train collides with a trailerTrailer (vehicle)A trailer is generally an unpowered vehicle pulled by a powered vehicle. Commonly, the term trailer refers to such vehicles used for transport of goods and materials....
; about 20 cars carrying plastic pellets, benzeneBenzeneBenzene is an organic chemical compound. It is composed of 6 carbon atoms in a ring, with 1 hydrogen atom attached to each carbon atom, with the molecular formula C6H6....
, glycol and hexaneHexaneHexane is a hydrocarbon with the chemical formula C6H14; that is, an alkane with six carbon atoms.The term may refer to any of four other structural isomers with that formula, or to a mixture of them. In the IUPAC nomenclature, however, hexane is the unbranched isomer ; the other four structures...
catch fire, forcing the evacuation of nearly 200 residents. - May 10, 2002 – Potters Bar rail crashPotters Bar rail crashThere have been at least three railway accidents in Potters Bar, a town in Hertfordshire, United Kingdom, just north of Greater London. One occurred in 1898, one in 1946 and the last in 2002.-1898:...
, north of London, England, United Kingdom: a northbound train derails at high speed; 7 people die, 11 seriously injured. - May 13, 2002 – Jaunpur train crashJaunpur train crashThe Jaunpur train crash was the result of an act of sabotage which caused the derailment of a passenger train at Jaunpur in Uttar Pradesh, a state in Northern India on the 13 May 2002.- Overview :...
, 12 people die when a passenger train derails and crashes in Uttar PradeshUttar PradeshUttar Pradesh abbreviation U.P. , is a state located in the northern part of India. With a population of over 200 million people, it is India's most populous state, as well as the world's most populous sub-national entity...
. It is insinuated that the train was sabotaged. - May 25, 2002 – Tenga, MozambiqueTenga, Mozambique- External links :*...
: In an accident reminiscent of the 1889 Armagh rail disasterArmagh rail disasterThe Armagh rail disaster happened on 12 June 1889 near Armagh, Ireland when a crowded Sunday school excursion train had to negotiate a steep incline; the steam locomotive was unable to complete the climb and the train stalled. The train crew decided to divide the train and take forward the front...
, passenger carriages, separated from a train also carrying freight, run away and smash into a cement train, killing 200 people. - May 28, 2002 – Clarendon, TexasClarendon, TexasClarendon is a city in Donley County, Texas, United States. The population was 1,974 at the 2000 census. The county seat of Donley County, Clarendon is located on United States Highway 287 in the Texas Panhandle some sixty miles east of Amarillo. It was established in 1878 by Methodist clergyman L.H...
, United States: A BNSF RailwayBNSF RailwayThe BNSF Railway is a wholly owned subsidiary of Berkshire Hathaway Inc., and is headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas. It is one of seven North American Class I railroads and the second largest freight railroad network in North America, second only to the Union Pacific Railroad, its primary...
coal train exceeds its movement authority under an "after-arrival" track warrantTrack warrantTrack warrants are systematized permissions used on some railroad lines to authorize a train's use of the main line. Dispatchers issue these permissions to train crews instead of using signals. The crews receive track warrants by radio, phone, or electronic transmission from a...
while the engineer is making a personal cell phone call, and collides head-onHead-on collisionA head-on collision is one where the front ends of two ships, trains, planes or vehicles hit each other, as opposed to a side collision or rear-end collision.-Rail transport:...
with a BNSF intermodal train. All four crew members jump from their trains before impact and are injured, the intermodal engineer fatally. - June 13, 2002 – Alawwa train crash, Sri LankaSri LankaSri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka is a country off the southern coast of the Indian subcontinent. Known until 1972 as Ceylon , Sri Lanka is an island surrounded by the Indian Ocean, the Gulf of Mannar and the Palk Strait, and lies in the vicinity of India and the...
: Train derails whilst coming into Alawwa station, killing 14 people. - June 24, 2002 – Igandu train disasterIgandu train disasterThe Igandu train disaster was an accident which occurred during the early morning of the 24 June 2002 in the East African country of Tanzania when a large passenger train with over 1,200 people on board rolled backwards down a hill into a stationary goods train, killing 281 people in the worst rail...
, TanzaniaTanzaniaThe United Republic of Tanzania is a country in East Africa bordered by Kenya and Uganda to the north, Rwanda, Burundi, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the west, and Zambia, Malawi, and Mozambique to the south. The country's eastern borders lie on the Indian Ocean.Tanzania is a state...
: Nearly 300 people die when a passenger train rolls backwards into a goods train. - July 20, 2002 – Rometta Marea derailmentRometta Marea derailmentThe Rometta Marea derailment occurred on Saturday July 20, 2002, in Rometta Marea, part of the Rometta comune in Sicily, Italy.The Espresso 1932 Freccia della Laguna, a Ferrovie dello Stato train coming from Palermo to Messina, where it would join another convoy coming from Siracusa, derailed...
. The PalermoPalermoPalermo is a city in Southern Italy, the capital of both the autonomous region of Sicily and the Province of Palermo. The city is noted for its history, culture, architecture and gastronomy, playing an important role throughout much of its existence; it is over 2,700 years old...
–VeniceVeniceVenice is a city in northern Italy which is renowned for the beauty of its setting, its architecture and its artworks. It is the capital of the Veneto region...
train derails in Rometta Marea, Messina, Italy, killing eight people. - July 29, 2002 – Kensington, MarylandKensington, MarylandKensington is a town in Montgomery County, Maryland, United States. The population was 1,873 at the 2000 census. Greater Kensington encompasses the entire 20895 zip code and its population is an order of magnitude larger than that of the town at its center....
, United States: The eastbound Amtrak Capitol Limited, train 30, while traversing a CSX route, strikes a sun kinkSun kinkSun kink refers to a condition that can occur on hot days in rail tracks. The phenomenon is caused by what is properly termed as buckling.The buckling force in the track due to warming up is a function of the rise in temperature only and is independent of the track length: F = E A \alpha_L \Delta...
at 1:55 PM while traveling at 60 mph (100 km/h) near milepost 11.78. Several cars go down an embankment and four SuperlinerSuperliner (railcar)The Superliner is a double decker passenger car used by Amtrak on long haul trains that do not use the Northeast Corridor. The initial cars were built by Pullman-Standard in the late 1970s and a second order was built in the mid 1990s by Bombardier Transportation...
s overturn against trees. 16 people are seriously injured and 79 people suffer from minor injuries. The misalignment was determined to be caused by an improperly tamped ballast and excessive speed in the 96°F (35°C) sunny weather. "Slow orders" were imposed on passenger trains in the area on very hot days following this accident. - September 9, 2002 – Bad MünderBad MünderBad Münder is a town in the Hamelin-Pyrmont district, in Lower Saxony, Germany, situated on the south side the Deister hills, approximatively 15 km northeast of Hamelin.- References :...
, Germany: Two freight trains collide head-onHead-on collisionA head-on collision is one where the front ends of two ships, trains, planes or vehicles hit each other, as opposed to a side collision or rear-end collision.-Rail transport:...
after a brake failure on one of the trains. A tank car loaded with 1-Chlor-2,3-epoxypropan explodes, contaminating the station and exposing 96 firemen to carcinogenic fumes. - September 9, 2002 – Rafiganj rail disaster. More than 130 people die when a passenger train derails and falls into the Dhave River in BiharBiharBihar is a state in eastern India. It is the 12th largest state in terms of geographical size at and 3rd largest by population. Almost 58% of Biharis are below the age of 25, which is the highest proportion in India....
because of sabotaged tracks. - September 27, 2002 – Jamaica, New YorkJamaica, QueensJamaica is a neighborhood in the borough of Queens in New York City, New York, United States. It was settled under Dutch rule in 1656 in New Netherland as Rustdorp. Under British rule, the Village of Jamaica became the center of the "Town of Jamaica"...
: Three cars of a JFK Airtrain test train derail near Federal CircleFederal Circle (AirTrain JFK station)Federal Circle is a station on the AirTrain JFK. It has 2 tracks and 1 island platform. It is a stop on both the Jamaica and Howard Beach Branches. This station serves car rentals, shuttle buses to other car rentals, hotels and the airport's cargo areas. The branch to Howard Beach goes on a...
. The train's lone occupant, a train operator testing the automated equipment, is crushed to death by the cement blocks inside the first car. The cement blocks were used to evenly distribute the weight inside the car, simulating the weight of customers when in passenger service. When the train derailed, the cement blocks collapsed onto the operator. - October 13, 2002 – BenallaBenalla, VictoriaBenalla is a city of just over 9,000 people located just off the Hume Freeway in north-eastern Victoria, Australia, about southwest of Wangaratta. Its Local Government Area is the Rural City of Benalla.- Overview :...
level crossing collision, VictoriaVictoria (Australia)Victoria is the second most populous state in Australia. Geographically the smallest mainland state, Victoria is bordered by New South Wales, South Australia, and Tasmania on Boundary Islet to the north, west and south respectively....
, Australia. A heritage train hauled by K classVictorian Railways K classThe K class was a branch line steam locomotive that ran on Victorian Railways from 1922 to 1979. Although its design was entirely conventional and its specifications unremarkable, the K class was in practice a remarkably versatile and dependable locomotive...
steam locomotiveSteam locomotiveA steam locomotive is a railway locomotive that produces its power through a steam engine. These locomotives are fueled by burning some combustible material, usually coal, wood or oil, to produce steam in a boiler, which drives the steam engine...
K 183 collides with a B-Double truck that failed to clear the level crossingLevel crossingA level crossing occurs where a railway line is intersected by a road or path onone level, without recourse to a bridge or tunnel. It is a type of at-grade intersection. The term also applies when a light rail line with separate right-of-way or reserved track crosses a road in the same fashion...
. The impact causes the locomotive to derail, rolling onto its side, and the locomotive's tender to be forced into the locomotive's cab. Three of the four people in the cab at the time of the collision are killed and one critically injured. - November 6, 2002 – Nancy, France: A fire breaks out in the front two carriages of an overnight sleeper train heading from Paris to ViennaViennaVienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
. 12 passengers die of smoke inhalation, 9 are injured. - December 21, 2002 – Kurnool train crashKurnool train crashThe Kurnool train crash was the derailment and crash of a passenger train in Kurnool district in Andhra Pradesh, India, on 21 December 2002.The train was an express passenger service traveling between Hyderabad and Bangalore, entered Kurnool district at 1.00am, when it suddenly derailed, throwing...
, 20 people die when a passenger train derails in Andhra PradeshAndhra PradeshAndhra Pradesh , is one of the 28 states of India, situated on the southeastern coast of India. It is India's fourth largest state by area and fifth largest by population. Its capital and largest city by population is Hyderabad.The total GDP of Andhra Pradesh is $100 billion and is ranked third...
, the result of sabotage.
2003
- January 3, 2003 – Ghatnandur train crashGhatnandur train crashThe Ghatnandur train crash occurred on the 3 January 2003, when a passenger train travelling from Secunderabad to Manmad crashed into the rear end of a heavy goods train near Ghatnandur in Maharashtra, India....
, 18 people die in the collision of two trains at Ghatnandur in MaharashtraMaharashtraMaharashtra is a state located in India. It is the second most populous after Uttar Pradesh and third largest state by area in India... - Jan 6, 2003 – Burbank, CaliforniaBurbank, CaliforniaBurbank is a city in Los Angeles County in Southern California, United States, north of downtown Los Angeles. The estimated population in 2010 was 103,340....
: A Metrolink train struck a stake truck at the dangerous Buena Vista crossing and derails in the Los AngelesLos Angeles, CaliforniaLos Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
suburbSuburbThe word suburb mostly refers to a residential area, either existing as part of a city or as a separate residential community within commuting distance of a city . Some suburbs have a degree of administrative autonomy, and most have lower population density than inner city neighborhoods...
, killing 2 people and injuring over 30. This crossing had several previous non-fatal accidents. - January 31, 2003 – Waterfall train disasterWaterfall train disasterThe Waterfall rail accident was a train accident that occurred on 31 January 2003 near Waterfall, New South Wales, Australia. The train derailed, killing seven people aboard, including the train driver.-Incident:...
, Waterfall, New South WalesWaterfall, New South WalesWaterfall is a small suburb in southern Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Waterfall is located 38 kilometers south of the Sydney central business district in the Sutherland Shire....
, Australia: The driver of a southbound passenger train suffers a heart attackMyocardial infarctionMyocardial infarction or acute myocardial infarction , commonly known as a heart attack, results from the interruption of blood supply to a part of the heart, causing heart cells to die...
and dies; the train speeds out of control and derails on a curve, overturning several cars; 6 passengers die. - February 2, 2003 – Dete train crashDete train crashThe Dete train crash was a railway accident which occurred on the 1 February 2003 in the Zimbabwean town of Dete in the Western part of the country about from Victoria Falls....
, ZimbabweZimbabweZimbabwe is a landlocked country located in the southern part of the African continent, between the Zambezi and Limpopo rivers. It is bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the southwest, Zambia and a tip of Namibia to the northwest and Mozambique to the east. Zimbabwe has three...
: Two trains collide, derailing and catching fire, killing over 40 people. - February 3, 2003 – Broadmeadows train runaway & crash, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia: An unmanned electric suburban train rolls away from Broadmeadows StationBroadmeadows railway station, MelbourneBroadmeadows is a railway station in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, located in the suburb of Broadmeadows, on the Craigieburn railway line. Broadmeadows is classed as a Premium Station and is in Metcard Zone 2.-Facilities:...
and runs for 16.848 kilometres at speeds in excess of 100 km/h through many pedestrian and level crossings before crashing into a stationary Diesel passenger train at Southern Cross StationSouthern Cross StationSouthern Cross is a major railway station and transport hub in Melbourne Docklands, Victoria, Australia. It is located on Spencer Street between Collins and La Trobe Streets at the western edge of the central business district...
derailing both. No injuries result from this incident. - February 18, 2003 – Daegu subway fireDaegu subway fireThe Daegu subway fire was a mass murder suicide attack on February 18, 2003 which killed at least 198 Koreans and injured at least 147. An arsonist set fire to a train stopped at the Jungangno Station of the Daegu Metropolitan Subway in Daegu, South Korea...
, South Korea: A mentally ill man starts a fire which engulfs two subwayRapid transitA rapid transit, underground, subway, elevated railway, metro or metropolitan railway system is an electric passenger railway in an urban area with a high capacity and frequency, and grade separation from other traffic. Rapid transit systems are typically located either in underground tunnels or on...
trains, killing some 200 people. - March 1, 2003 – ChiayiChiayi-Administration:-City attractions:*Chiayi Park*Sun Shooting Tower *Lantan *Historic Archives Building of Chiayi City*University of Chiayi*Chiayi Museum...
, TaiwanTaiwanTaiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...
: A brake system malfunction aboard a train on the Alishan Forest RailwayAlishan Forest RailwayThe Alishan Forest Railway is an 86 km network of narrow-gauge railways running up to and throughout the popular mountain resort of Alishan in Chiayi County, Taiwan...
causes the driver to lose control and the train plummets into a valley. 17 people die, 173 injured. - March 20, 2003 – RoermondRoermondRoermond is a city, a municipality, and a diocese in the southeastern part of the Netherlands.The city of Roermond is a historically important town, on the lower Roer at the east bank of the Meuse river. It received city rights in 1231...
, Netherlands: The driver of an NSNederlandse SpoorwegenNederlandse Spoorwegen , or NS, is the principal passenger railway operator in the Netherlands.Its trains operate over the tracks of the Dutch national railinfrastructure, operated by ProRail, which was split off from NS in 2003...
passenger train has a heart attackMyocardial infarctionMyocardial infarction or acute myocardial infarction , commonly known as a heart attack, results from the interruption of blood supply to a part of the heart, causing heart cells to die...
, runs through a red signalSignal passed at dangerA Signal passed at danger , in British railway terminology, occurs when a train passes a stop signal without authority to do so. It is a term primarily used within the British Railway Industry, although it can be applied worldwide.-Categories of SPAD:...
, collides head-onHead-on collisionA head-on collision is one where the front ends of two ships, trains, planes or vehicles hit each other, as opposed to a side collision or rear-end collision.-Rail transport:...
with a freight train; the driver is killed, six passengers are injured seriously. After passing a distant signal at danger the automatic safety systemAutomatische treinbeïnvloedingAutomatische TreinBeïnvloeding or ATB is a Dutch train protection system developed in the 1950s. Its installation was spurred by the Harmelen train disaster of 1962....
did not enforce a deceleration large enough to prevent a collision. - May 9, 2003 – SiófokSiófokSiófok is a city in Hungary on the southern bank of Lake Balaton in Somogy County. The city is one of Hungary's most popular holiday destinations, famous for its beaches and nightlife. Siófok is one of the richest municipalities of Hungary due to tourism...
, Hungary: A German tourist bus disregards the crossing signal at a level crossing and is struck by a fast train from BudapestBudapestBudapest is the capital of Hungary. As the largest city of Hungary, it is the country's principal political, cultural, commercial, industrial, and transportation centre. In 2011, Budapest had 1,733,685 inhabitants, down from its 1989 peak of 2,113,645 due to suburbanization. The Budapest Commuter...
to Nagykanizsa. 33 tourists are killed. - May 15, 2003 – Ladhowal train fireLadhowal train fireThe Ladhowal rail disaster on 15 May 2003, was an flash fire which began at 4am on the Frontier Mail train service in India, and engulfed three carriages before it could be extinguished...
, A passenger train catches fire, 38 people die near Ladhowal in the PunjabPunjab (India)Punjab ) is a state in the northwest of the Republic of India, forming part of the larger Punjab region. The state is bordered by the Indian states of Himachal Pradesh to the east, Haryana to the south and southeast and Rajasthan to the southwest as well as the Pakistani province of Punjab to the...
. - June 3, 2003 – Albacete train crash: 19 people die when a TALGOTalgoTalgo is a Spanish manufacturer of railway vehicles. It is best known for a design of articulated railway passenger cars in which the wheels are mounted in pairs, but not joined by an axle, and being between rather than underneath the individual coaches...
train and a freight train collide head-onHead-on collisionA head-on collision is one where the front ends of two ships, trains, planes or vehicles hit each other, as opposed to a side collision or rear-end collision.-Rail transport:...
in AlbaceteAlbaceteAlbacete is a city and municipality in southeastern Spain, 258 km southeast of Madrid, the capital of the province of Albacete in the autonomous community of Castile-La Mancha. The municipality had a population of c. 169,700 in 2009....
, Southern Spain. - June 11, 2003 – 6 people die and 25 are injured when two passenger trains collide head-onHead-on collisionA head-on collision is one where the front ends of two ships, trains, planes or vehicles hit each other, as opposed to a side collision or rear-end collision.-Rail transport:...
near SchrozbergSchrozbergSchrozberg is a town in the district of Schwäbisch Hall, in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is located west of Rothenburg ob der Tauber, and northeast of Schwäbisch Hall....
, Germany. - June 20, 2003 – Commerce, CaliforniaCommerce, CaliforniaCommerce is a city located in southeast Los Angeles County, California, United States. The population was 12,823 at the 2010 census, up from 12,568 at the 2000 census. It is bordered by Vernon on the west, Los Angeles on the northwest, East Los Angeles on the north, Montebello on the east, Downey...
: A runaway Union PacificUnion Pacific RailroadThe Union Pacific Railroad , headquartered in Omaha, Nebraska, is the largest railroad network in the United States. James R. Young is president, CEO and Chairman....
freight train carrying lumberLumberLumber or timber is wood in any of its stages from felling through readiness for use as structural material for construction, or wood pulp for paper production....
derails in the Los AngelesLos Angeles, CaliforniaLos Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
suburbSuburbThe word suburb mostly refers to a residential area, either existing as part of a city or as a separate residential community within commuting distance of a city . Some suburbs have a degree of administrative autonomy, and most have lower population density than inner city neighborhoods...
, destroying several homes and rupturing natural gas lines. - June 23, 2003 – Vaibhavwadi rail disaster: 51 people die when a special holiday train derails in MaharashtraMaharashtraMaharashtra is a state located in India. It is the second most populous after Uttar Pradesh and third largest state by area in India...
, India. - July 2, 2003 – Warangal train crashWarangal train crashThe Warangal train crash was an accident which occurred on July 2, 2003 in the town of Warangal, Andhra Pradesh, in India.The Golconda Express passenger service from Guntur to Secunderabad was scheduled to stop at Warangal station in mid-morning, but the driver failed to halt the train...
: 22 people die when a train's brakes fail and it falls off a bridge into a crowded fish market in WarangalWarangalWarangal is a city and a municipal corporation in Warangal district in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. Warangal is located northeast of the state capital of Hyderabad and is the administrative headquarters of Warangal District. This district is a combination of three cities: Warangal,...
, India. - July 7, 2003 – Between EveshamEveshamEvesham is a market town and a civil parish in the Local Authority District of Wychavon in the county of Worcestershire, England with a population of 22,000. It is located roughly equidistant between Worcester, Cheltenham and Stratford-upon-Avon...
and PershorePershorePershore is a market town in Worcestershire, England, on the banks of the River Avon. Pershore is in the Wychavon district and is part of the West Worcestershire parliamentary constituency. At the 2001 census the population was 7,304...
, WorcestershireWorcestershireWorcestershire is a non-metropolitan county, established in antiquity, located in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes it is a NUTS 3 region and is one of three counties that comprise the "Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Warwickshire" NUTS 2 region...
, England, United Kingdom, a First Great Western train collides with a minibus on a level crossing, killing 3 people in the minibus. - August 3, 2003 – KentKentKent is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames Estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent and the unitary borough of...
, England, United Kingdom: Romney, Hythe and Dymchurch RailwayRomney, Hythe and Dymchurch RailwayThe Romney, Hythe & Dymchurch Railway is a gauge light railway in Kent, England. The line runs from the Cinque Port of Hythe via Dymchurch, St...
steam train hits a car driven across the level crossing. Steam train driver dies, car driver with passenger and some train passengers are injured. - October 12, 2003 – Chicago, Illinois, United States: A MetraMetraMetra is the commuter rail division of the Illinois Regional Transportation Authority. The system serves Chicago and its metropolitan area through 240 stations on 11 different rail lines. Throughout the 21st century, Metra has been the second busiest commuter rail system in the United States by...
train carrying 350 passengers derails after its engineer ignores warning signals telling him to slow down for a track change and continues travelling at 73 miles per hour (32.6 m/s) over a 10 miles per hour (4.5 m/s) switchRailroad switchA railroad switch, turnout or [set of] points is a mechanical installation enabling railway trains to be guided from one track to another at a railway junction....
. Front locomotive rolls onto its side and catches fire. 45 injured. The engineer is not terminated and continues to work for Metra. This occurs in the same spot and for the same reasons as the 2005 Metra crash. - October 14 – at Yingge, Taipei CountyTaipei CountyNew Taipei City is the most populous city of Taiwan. The area includes a substantial stretch of Taiwan's northern coastline and surrounds the Taipei Basin...
(now New Taipei City), TaiwanTaiwanTaiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...
, a bus carrying students on a field trip collides with a south-bound train, killing 4 and injuring 42. - November 26 – Matadi-Kinshasa RailwayMatadi-Kinshasa RailwayThe Matadi-Kinshasa Railway is a railway line in Bas-Congo Province between the port of Matadi and Kinshasa, the capital of Democratic Republic of the Congo.The Matadi-Kinshasa Railway was built from 1890 to 1898...
- a train runs off the line in the Democratic Republic of the CongoDemocratic Republic of the CongoThe Democratic Republic of the Congo is a state located in Central Africa. It is the second largest country in Africa by area and the eleventh largest in the world...
and is damaged in the river, officially causing 10 deaths.
2004
- February 15, 2004 – Tebay rail accidentTebay rail accidentThe Tebay rail accident occurred when four railway workers working on the West Coast Main Line were killed by a runaway wagon near Tebay, Cumbria, England in the early hours of 15 February 2004.-Incident:...
, CumbriaCumbriaCumbria , is a non-metropolitan county in North West England. The county and Cumbria County Council, its local authority, came into existence in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972. Cumbria's largest settlement and county town is Carlisle. It consists of six districts, and in...
, England, United Kingdom: A sleeper (railroad tie) transporter trolley with defective brakes carrying 16 tonnes of rails becomes detached from a maintenance train south of Penrith and rolls down the falling gradient until it strikes and kills 4 workmen in a team repairing the line at Tebay, between OxenholmeOxenholmeOxenholme is a village in England just south of the town of Kendal, with which it has begun to merge. It is best known for Oxenholme Lake District railway station on the West Coast Main Line. Because Oxenholme does not have its own church it is technically a hamlet.-History:Oxenholme station opened...
and PenrithPenrith, CumbriaPenrith was an urban district between 1894 and 1974, when it was merged into Eden District.The authority's area was coterminous with the civil parish of Penrith although when the council was abolished Penrith became an unparished area....
. The owner of the sleeper transporter truck (a contractor working for Network Rail) is prosecuted. (Source- The Metro newspaper (UK), March 2006). - February 18, 2004 – Nishapur train disasterNishapur train disasterThe Nishapur train disaster was a large explosion in the village of Khayyam, near Nishapur in Iran, on 18 February 2004. Over 300 people were killed and the entire village destroyed, when runaway train wagons crashed into the community in the middle of the night and exploded.The incident began in...
, NishapurNishapurNishapur or Nishabur , is a city in the Razavi Khorasan province in northeastern Iran, situated in a fertile plain at the foot of the Binalud Mountains, near the regional capital of Mashhad...
, Iran - March 11, 2004 – 2004 Madrid train bombings: 191 people die when bombs are detonated on four commuter trains in Madrid.
- April 16, 2004 – Temelli, Turkey: An overnight İzmirIzmirIzmir is a large metropolis in the western extremity of Anatolia. The metropolitan area in the entire Izmir Province had a population of 3.35 million as of 2010, making the city third most populous in Turkey...
to Ankara express hits a truck in Temelli, near Ankara, as it crosses a level-crossing. 7 to 10 children die and 2 to 5 more are injured according to various reports at the time. - April 22, 2004 – Ryongchon disasterRyongchon disasterThe Ryongchŏn disaster was a train disaster that occurred in the town of Ryongchŏn, North Korea, near the border with the People's Republic of China on April 22, 2004....
, North KoreaNorth KoreaThe Democratic People’s Republic of Korea , , is a country in East Asia, occupying the northern half of the Korean Peninsula. Its capital and largest city is Pyongyang. The Korean Demilitarized Zone serves as the buffer zone between North Korea and South Korea...
: 161 people killed and more than 1000 injured when an explosion takes place. - June 17, 2004 – Karanjadi train crashKaranjadi train crashThe Karanjadi train crash was the accidental derailment of a passenger train at Karanjadi, a village in Maharashtra, India, on June 17, 2004. 20 people were killed and well over 100 injured in the crash, which was the result of heavy monsoon rains.- Overview :...
, near Matsyagandha, MumbaiMumbaiMumbai , formerly known as Bombay in English, is the capital of the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is the most populous city in India, and the fourth most populous city in the world, with a total metropolitan area population of approximately 20.5 million...
, India: 20 people die and 100 are injured when 10 carriages fall off a bridge during a monsoon-induced landslide. - June 28, 2004 – Macdona, TexasMacdona, TexasMacdona is an unincorporated community in Bexar County, Texas, United States. Macdona lies along the Union Pacific rail line near Loop 1604 in southwest Bexar County. It is part of the San Antonio Metropolitan Statistical Area.-History:...
, United States, near San AntonioSan Antonio, TexasSan Antonio is the seventh-largest city in the United States of America and the second-largest city within the state of Texas, with a population of 1.33 million. Located in the American Southwest and the south–central part of Texas, the city serves as the seat of Bexar County. In 2011,...
: 4 people die and 51 are injured when a Union Pacific RailroadUnion Pacific RailroadThe Union Pacific Railroad , headquartered in Omaha, Nebraska, is the largest railroad network in the United States. James R. Young is president, CEO and Chairman....
train fails to stop at a signal and collides with another train, causing lethal chlorine gas to leak out of a train car. The UP driver and two local residents living near the tracks die. Several other residents and many visiting an area SeaWorldSeaWorldSeaWorld is a United States chain of marine mammal parks, oceanariums, and animal theme parks owned by SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment. The parks feature captive orca, sea lion, and dolphin shows and zoological displays featuring various other marine animals. There are operations in Orlando,...
theme park are injured seriously by the gas. - July 23, 2004 – An IstanbulIstanbulIstanbul , historically known as Byzantium and Constantinople , is the largest city of Turkey. Istanbul metropolitan province had 13.26 million people living in it as of December, 2010, which is 18% of Turkey's population and the 3rd largest metropolitan area in Europe after London and...
–AnkaraAnkaraAnkara is the capital of Turkey and the country's second largest city after Istanbul. The city has a mean elevation of , and as of 2010 the metropolitan area in the entire Ankara Province had a population of 4.4 million....
express with 230 people on board, derails at PamukovaPamukovaPamukova is a town and district of Sakarya Province in the Marmara region of Turkey. The mayor is Cevat Keser ....
, Sakarya ProvinceSakarya ProvinceSakarya Province is a province in Turkey, located on the coast of Black Sea. The river Sakarya creates a webbing of estuaries in the province....
, Turkey and the carriages overturn, according to TurkishTurkeyTurkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
government official confirmed, killing at least 38 people, injuring another 80. - August 4, 2004 – Near Tavsancil, Turkey: 6 die and 85 are injured when a train driver falls asleep at the controls, goes through a red light and hits a stationary train head-onHead-on collisionA head-on collision is one where the front ends of two ships, trains, planes or vehicles hit each other, as opposed to a side collision or rear-end collision.-Rail transport:...
. - September 10, 2004 – Nosaby, near KristianstadKristianstadKristianstad is a city and the seat of Kristianstad Municipality, Skåne County, Sweden with 35,711 inhabitants in 2010.-History:The city was founded in 1614 by King Christian IV of Denmark, the city's name literally means 'Town of Christian', as a planned city after the burning of the town of Vä...
, SkåneScaniaScania is the southernmost of the 25 traditional non-administrative provinces of Sweden, constituting a peninsula on the southern tip of the Scandinavian peninsula, and some adjacent islands. The modern administrative subdivision Skåne County is almost, but not totally, congruent with the...
, Sweden: A heavy truck is caught between the barriers at a level crossing, and is hit by a passenger train. Two aboard the train die, 47 people are injured. The truck driver was found guilty of not attempting to move the vehicle away from the level crossing, and was sentenced to 14 months' imprisonment. - October 23, 2004 – Nagaoka, NiigataNagaoka, Niigatais a city located in the central part of Niigata Prefecture, Japan. It is the second largest city in the prefecture, behind the capital city of Niigata...
: During the Chūetsu Earthquake2004 Chuetsu earthquakeThe occurred at 5:56 p.m. on Saturday, October 23, 2004 . The Japan Meteorological Agency has named it the Heisei 16 Niigata Prefecture Chuetsu Earthquake or The Mid Niigata Prefecture Earthquake of 2004...
eight of ten cars of the Toki No. 325 train on the Jōetsu ShinkansenJoetsu ShinkansenThe is a high-speed railway line connecting Tokyo and Niigata, Japan, via the Tōhoku Shinkansen, operated by the East Japan Railway Company .-History:The program was initiated in 1971 by Niigata-born prime minister Tanaka Kakuei...
derail. None of the 154 passengers are killed or injured. - November 3, 2004 – Washington, D.C., United States: An out-of-service Washington MetroWashington MetroThe Washington Metro, commonly called Metro, and unofficially Metrorail, is the rapid transit system in Washington, D.C., United States, and its surrounding suburbs. It is administered by the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority , which also operates Metrobus service under the Metro name...
train rolls backwards into the Woodley Park-Zoo/Adams Morgan Station and hits a revenue train servicing the station. No one dies, 20 people are injured. The National Transportation Safety Board [RAR-06/01] determines that the probable cause was the failure of the operator of the out-of-service train to apply the brakes to stop the train, likely due to his reduced alertness. - November 6, 2004 – Ufton Nervet rail crashUfton Nervet rail crashThe Ufton Nervet rail crash was a railway accident between a train and car near Ufton Nervet, Berkshire, England that caused seven deaths.-Collision:...
, Berkshire, England, United Kingdom: A High Speed TrainHigh Speed TrainThere are three types of trains in Britain that have been traditionally viewed as high speed trains:* Advanced Passenger Train - Tilting trains which never entered into regular revenue-earning service....
hits a stationary car on a level crossingLevel crossingA level crossing occurs where a railway line is intersected by a road or path onone level, without recourse to a bridge or tunnel. It is a type of at-grade intersection. The term also applies when a light rail line with separate right-of-way or reserved track crosses a road in the same fashion...
(an apparent suicideSuicideSuicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Suicide is often committed out of despair or attributed to some underlying mental disorder, such as depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, alcoholism, or drug abuse...
) at 100 mph and derails. Five train passengers and the drivers of both the train and the car die; more than 100 passengers are injured. - November 10, 2004 – AnkaraAnkaraAnkara is the capital of Turkey and the country's second largest city after Istanbul. The city has a mean elevation of , and as of 2010 the metropolitan area in the entire Ankara Province had a population of 4.4 million....
, Turkey: 37 die when an express train hits a truck on a crossing near Ankara and derails. - November 11, 2004 – San Antonio, TexasSan Antonio, TexasSan Antonio is the seventh-largest city in the United States of America and the second-largest city within the state of Texas, with a population of 1.33 million. Located in the American Southwest and the south–central part of Texas, the city serves as the seat of Bexar County. In 2011,...
: A Union Pacific RailroadUnion Pacific RailroadThe Union Pacific Railroad , headquartered in Omaha, Nebraska, is the largest railroad network in the United States. James R. Young is president, CEO and Chairman....
train derails off the tracks in an industrial district, killing one man working in a warehouse office and injuring others. - November 14, 2004 – AnkaraAnkaraAnkara is the capital of Turkey and the country's second largest city after Istanbul. The city has a mean elevation of , and as of 2010 the metropolitan area in the entire Ankara Province had a population of 4.4 million....
, Turkey: 15 people die and 45 injured as an express train derails near Ankara. - November 15, 2004 – Cairns Tilt Train derailmentCairns Tilt Train derailmentThe Cairns Tilt Train derailment occurred at 11:55 pm on 15 November 2004 when the City of Townsville diesel tilt train derailed north of Berajondo, approximately northwest of Brisbane, the state capital of Queensland, Australia....
, Berajondo (near BundabergBundaberg, QueenslandBundaberg is a city in Queensland, Australia. It is part of the Local Government Area of the Bundaberg Region and is a major centre within Queensland's broader Wide Bay-Burnett geographical region...
), Queensland, Australia: The world's fastest narrow-gauge train derails at 112 km/h. No one is killed or permanently injured. The accident is blamed on the train travelling too fast on a curved line. - November 29, 2004 – Richland, Florida: Two CSX freight trains collide in early morning fog at Vitis Junction, killing one and injuring three.
- December 26, 2004 – Queen of the Sea rail disaster, Telwatta, Sri LankaSri LankaSri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka is a country off the southern coast of the Indian subcontinent. Known until 1972 as Ceylon , Sri Lanka is an island surrounded by the Indian Ocean, the Gulf of Mannar and the Palk Strait, and lies in the vicinity of India and the...
: Approximately 1700 people die in the world's worst rail disaster as a train is overwhelmed by a tsunamiTsunamiA tsunami is a series of water waves caused by the displacement of a large volume of a body of water, typically an ocean or a large lake...
created by the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake2004 Indian Ocean earthquakeThe 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake was an undersea megathrust earthquake that occurred at 00:58:53 UTC on Sunday, December 26, 2004, with an epicentre off the west coast of Sumatra, Indonesia. The quake itself is known by the scientific community as the Sumatra-Andaman earthquake...
.
2005
- January 6, 2005 – Graniteville train disasterGraniteville train disasterThe Graniteville train disaster was an American rail disaster that occurred on January 6, 2005, in Graniteville, South Carolina.At roughly 2:40 am Eastern Standard Time, two Norfolk Southern trains collided near an Avondale Mills plant in Graniteville. Norfolk Southern train No. P22 was parked on...
, Graniteville, South CarolinaGraniteville, South CarolinaGraniteville is an unincorporated community in Aiken County, South Carolina, United States. It lies along U.S. 1, five miles west of Aiken. The town lies in Horse Creek Valley which originates in the nearby town of Vaucluse....
, United States: 9 people (including the engineer) die and over 250 are injured when a 42-car Norfolk Southern freight train collides head-onHead-on collisionA head-on collision is one where the front ends of two ships, trains, planes or vehicles hit each other, as opposed to a side collision or rear-end collision.-Rail transport:...
with a stopped local near the Avondale Mills plant in Graniteville. 16 cars are derailed in this accident, including a tank car that ruptures 90 tons of chlorine gas into the air, leading to the deaths and injuries that occurred during this accident. The NTSB determines the cause of the accident is a failure to reline the switch for mainline operations. - January 7, 2005 – Crevalcore train crashCrevalcore train crashThe Crevalcore train crash was a major railway accident which occurred on 7 January 2005 on the Verona–Bologna railway, Italy, killing 17. It was one of the worst accidents in the recent history of the state railway company Ferrovie dello Stato...
. A passenger train running from VeronaVeronaVerona ; German Bern, Dietrichsbern or Welschbern) is a city in the Veneto, northern Italy, with approx. 265,000 inhabitants and one of the seven chef-lieus of the region. It is the second largest city municipality in the region and the third of North-Eastern Italy. The metropolitan area of Verona...
to BolognaBolognaBologna is the capital city of Emilia-Romagna, in the Po Valley of Northern Italy. The city lies between the Po River and the Apennine Mountains, more specifically, between the Reno River and the Savena River. Bologna is a lively and cosmopolitan Italian college city, with spectacular history,...
fails to stop at a red light and collides frontally with a freight train, near CrevalcoreCrevalcoreCrevalcore is a town and comune in the Emilia-Romagna region near Bologna, Italy.-External links:*...
. There was dense fog at the time of the accident. 17 die. - January 12, 2005 – Fort St. John, Winnipeg. 5 cars of a CN propane tanker train de-rail, causing a major evacuation.
- January 17, 2005 – Bangkok. 140 passengers are injured in a collision of 2 metro trains in the new MRT Blue-line.
- January 26, 2005 – Glendale train crashGlendale train crashThe 2005 Glendale train crash is the second deadliest incident in the history of Metrolink, the commuter railroad in the Los Angeles, California, area. It was overtaken as the deadliest by the 2008 Chatsworth train collision.On January 26, 2005, at 6:03 a.m...
, Glendale, CaliforniaGlendale, CaliforniaGlendale is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States. As of the 2010 Census, the city population is 191,719, down from 194,973 at the 2000 census. making it the third largest city in Los Angeles County and the 22nd largest city in the state of California...
, United States: In a planned suicide attempt in which the suspect changes his mind, a southbound MetrolinkMetrolink (Southern California)Metrolink is a commuter rail system serving Los Angeles and the surrounding area of Southern California; it currently consists of six lines and 55 stations using of track....
double-deck commuter train collides with the man's vehicle that he has driven onto the tracks and then abandoned. The southbound train derails, then strikes both a moving northbound Metrolink train on the adjacent track as well as a parked Union Pacific RailroadUnion Pacific RailroadThe Union Pacific Railroad , headquartered in Omaha, Nebraska, is the largest railroad network in the United States. James R. Young is president, CEO and Chairman....
freight train on a siding. 11 people die, about 100 injured. - February 3, 2005 – Nagpur level crossing disasterNagpur level crossing disasterThe Nagpur level crossing disaster was an accident that occurred on 3 February 2005, when a crowded trailer being towed by a tractor was hit by a train near the village of Kanan, 20km from Nagpur in Maharashtra, India...
, India: A tractor-trailer carrying a wedding party is hit by a train. 55 wedding guests die. - February 9, 2005 – RigaRigaRiga is the capital and largest city of Latvia. With 702,891 inhabitants Riga is the largest city of the Baltic states, one of the largest cities in Northern Europe and home to more than one third of Latvia's population. The city is an important seaport and a major industrial, commercial,...
, LatviaLatviaLatvia , officially the Republic of Latvia , is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by Estonia , to the south by Lithuania , to the east by the Russian Federation , to the southeast by Belarus and shares maritime borders to the west with Sweden...
: A Lielvarde-Riga passenger train collides with empty stock heading for Riga train depot, killing four people and injuring 32. Official report states that the conductor had missed the red signal. - February 14, 2005 – Oxnard, CaliforniaOxnard, CaliforniaOxnard is the 113th largest city in the United States, 19th largest city in California and largest city in Ventura County, California, by way of population. It is located at the western edge of the fertile Oxnard Plain, and is an important agricultural center, with its distinction as the...
: An Amtrak Pacific SurflinerPacific SurflinerThe Pacific Surfliner is a Amtrak regional passenger train route serving communities on the coast of Southern California between San Diego and San Luis Obispo....
train smashes into a semi truck carrying frozen strawberries. The heavy impact destroyed the back of the semi, severely damaged the train's front, and separated the locomotiveLocomotiveA locomotive is a railway vehicle that provides the motive power for a train. The word originates from the Latin loco – "from a place", ablative of locus, "place" + Medieval Latin motivus, "causing motion", and is a shortened form of the term locomotive engine, first used in the early 19th...
from the rest of the passenger cars. There were 2 people aboard the train who had minor injuries. The cause of the accident was that the traffic signal wasn't functioning correctly with the railroad crossing, causing the confused truck driver to stop on the railroad tracks. There are 2 cameras set up on both sides of the crossing, showing the accident. - February 28, 2005 – A chlorine tanker train derails due to brake failure after they were wrongly set to "empty". The line was closed for 2 weeks.
- April 14, 2005 – Solon Springs, WisconsinSolon Springs, WisconsinSolon Springs is a village in Douglas County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 576 at the 2000 census. The village is located within the Town of Solon Springs.-Transportation:U.S. Highway 53 serves as a main arterial route in the community...
: 19 cars of a CN train derail and cause a forest fire. - April 15, 2005 – in Bratislava-Petržalka railway station in the 11.00, the Austrian ÖBB railway company's international train IC 402 Gerlach Bratislava-Vienna hits a car - 1 member injured.
- April 21, 2005 – Vadodara rail collision, India: collision between freight and passenger express train; 18 people die.
- April 25, 2005 – Amagasaki rail crashAmagasaki rail crashThe Amagasaki rail crash occurred on 25 April 2005 at 09:19 local time , just after the local rush hour. The Rapid Service came off the tracks on the West Japan Railway Company Fukuchiyama Line in Amagasaki, Hyōgo Prefecture, near Osaka, just before Amagasaki Station on its way for Dōshisha-mae...
, Amagasaki, HyōgoAmagasaki, Hyogois an industrial city located in Hyōgo Prefecture, Japan. The city was founded on April 1, 1916. Its population is around 460,000, below its peak of over 554,000 in 1971.-History:...
, Japan: A train derails on sharp curve and smashes into an apartment building. 107 people die, 549 are injured. Investigation shows the driver was speeding because of a slight delay. - April 26, 2005 – Polgahawela level crossing collisionPolgahawela level crossing collisionOn April 27, 2005, at Polgahawela in Sri Lanka, a serious bus accident occurred on a level crossing.- Overview :The bus was a local service to Alawwa, reportedly carrying over 90 people. At 0830AM to 0845AM local time , the bus was travelling through Polgahawela, 80 km north-east of Colombo...
, Sri LankaSri LankaSri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka is a country off the southern coast of the Indian subcontinent. Known until 1972 as Ceylon , Sri Lanka is an island surrounded by the Indian Ocean, the Gulf of Mannar and the Palk Strait, and lies in the vicinity of India and the...
: a bus tries to beat the train at a level crossingLevel crossingA level crossing occurs where a railway line is intersected by a road or path onone level, without recourse to a bridge or tunnel. It is a type of at-grade intersection. The term also applies when a light rail line with separate right-of-way or reserved track crosses a road in the same fashion...
; at least 35 people die, all on the bus. - May 5, 2005 – Galt, IllinoisGalt, IllinoisGalt is an unincorporated community in Whiteside County, Illinois, United States. Galt is west of Sterling. Galt has a post office with ZIP code 61037....
, United States - A Union Pacific train derails and destroys the 140 feet (42.7 m) Transcontinental mainline bridge at Elkhorn creek. - May 9, 2005 – BiaoraBiaoraBiaora is a city and a municipality in Rajgarh district in the state of Madhya Pradesh, India. It is one of the six divisions of rajgarh district.-Geography:...
, India: 8 die when a bullock cart is hit at a level-crossing in Biaora. - May 19, 2005 – Bandar LampungBandar Lampung- External links :*...
, IndonesiaIndonesiaIndonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
: A passenger train from PalembangPalembangPalembang is the capital city of the South Sumatra province in Indonesia. Palembang is one of the oldest cities in Indonesia, and has a history of being a capital of a maritime empire. Located on the Musi River banks on the east coast of southern Sumatra island, it has an area of 400.61 square...
crashes into another passenger train at Bandar LampungBandar Lampung- External links :*...
station and derails. 7 children die and just under 200 were injured. Human errorHuman ErrorHuman Error is the stage name of Rafał Kuczynski , a polish electronic musician, working mostly in the ambient music genre, produced only with a computer...
is blamed for the accident and many of the dead are passengers clinging on to the sides of the Palembang train. The Indonesian government begins a crack down on people clinging on to the exteriors of trains as a means of travel. - June 12, 2005 – between Uzunovo and Bogatishchevo, Russia: At 0710 a bomb explodes derailing the locomotiveLocomotiveA locomotive is a railway vehicle that provides the motive power for a train. The word originates from the Latin loco – "from a place", ablative of locus, "place" + Medieval Latin motivus, "causing motion", and is a shortened form of the term locomotive engine, first used in the early 19th...
and first four passenger cars of the GroznyGroznyGrozny is the capital city of the Chechen Republic, Russia. The city lies on the Sunzha River. According to the preliminary results of the 2010 Census, the city had a population of 271,596; up from 210,720 recorded in the 2002 Census. but still only about two-thirds of 399,688 recorded in the 1989...
-Moscow train. Investigators find wires leading from the explosion site to a control panel and hideout about 50 meters from the site. - June 16, 2005 – Between ZubtsovZubtsovZubtsov is a town and the administrative center of Zubtsovsky District of Tver Oblast, Russia, located at the confluence of the Volga and Vazuza Rivers, south of Tver, southeast of Rzhev, and southwest of Staritsa. Population: 8,100 ....
and Aristovo in Tver OblastTver OblastTver Oblast is a federal subject of Russia . Its administrative center is the city of Tver. From 1935 to 1990, it was named Kalinin Oblast after Mikhail Kalinin. Population: Tver Oblast is an area of lakes, such as Seliger and Brosno...
of Russia: 27 of 60 fuel oilFuel oilFuel oil is a fraction obtained from petroleum distillation, either as a distillate or a residue. Broadly speaking, fuel oil is any liquid petroleum product that is burned in a furnace or boiler for the generation of heat or used in an engine for the generation of power, except oils having a flash...
tankers bound from Moscow to RigaRigaRiga is the capital and largest city of Latvia. With 702,891 inhabitants Riga is the largest city of the Baltic states, one of the largest cities in Northern Europe and home to more than one third of Latvia's population. The city is an important seaport and a major industrial, commercial,...
derail at a speed of about 70 km/h (43.5 mph), about 300 tonnes of fuel leaks. 641 metres (2,103 ft) of track are destroyed and the Volga RiverVolga RiverThe Volga is the largest river in Europe in terms of length, discharge, and watershed. It flows through central Russia, and is widely viewed as the national river of Russia. Out of the twenty largest cities of Russia, eleven, including the capital Moscow, are situated in the Volga's drainage...
was contaminated briefly. The crash was blamed on poor track maintenance. - June 21, 2005 – RevadimRevadimRevadim is a kibbutz in Israel on the southern coastal plain. It is under the administration of the Yoav Regional Council and affiliated with the Hashomer Hatza'ir movement.-History:...
, IsraelIsraelThe State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
: A BeershebaBeershebaBeersheba is the largest city in the Negev desert of southern Israel. Often referred to as the "Capital of the Negev", it is the seventh-largest city in Israel with a population of 194,300....
-bound passenger train collides with a coal delivery truck near RevadimRevadimRevadim is a kibbutz in Israel on the southern coastal plain. It is under the administration of the Yoav Regional Council and affiliated with the Hashomer Hatza'ir movement.-History:...
, about 40 kilometres (24.9 mi) south of Tel AvivTel AvivTel Aviv , officially Tel Aviv-Yafo , is the second most populous city in Israel, with a population of 404,400 on a land area of . The city is located on the Israeli Mediterranean coastline in west-central Israel. It is the largest and most populous city in the metropolitan area of Gush Dan, with...
. At least 7 die and more than 200 are injured. - June 30, 2005 – IndonesiaIndonesiaIndonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
: 2 die and 80 are injured (most seated on the train's roof) when a passenger train between BogorBogorBogor is a city on the island of Java in the West Java province of Indonesia. The city is located in the center of the Bogor Regency , 60 kilometers south of the Indonesian capital Jakarta...
and Jakata ploughs into the back of another train that is waiting in the station after a previous train had broken down outside the same station. Intense rain is blamed for reducing visibility. - July 7, 2005 – London, England, United Kingdom: A series of four terrorist explosions occur on London's transport system killing 52 people, plus four suicide bombersSuicide BombersSuicide Bombers is the name of a 2005 EP by Leæther Strip. For the Australian hardcore band see Suicide Bombers -Track listing:# Suicide Bombers# Suicide Bombers # The Shame Of A Nation # This Is Where I Wanna Be...
. (See 7 July 2005 London bombings7 July 2005 London bombingsThe 7 July 2005 London bombings were a series of co-ordinated suicide attacks in the United Kingdom, targeting civilians using London's public transport system during the morning rush hour....
) - July 10, 2005 – KentKentKent is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames Estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent and the unitary borough of...
, England, United Kingdom: Romney, Hythe and Dymchurch RailwayRomney, Hythe and Dymchurch RailwayThe Romney, Hythe & Dymchurch Railway is a gauge light railway in Kent, England. The line runs from the Cinque Port of Hythe via Dymchurch, St...
steam train hits a car driven across a level crossing. Steam train driver dies, car driver and train passengers are uninjured. - July 13, 2005 – Ghotki rail crashGhotki rail crashThe Ghotki rail crash occurred on July 13, 2005, at around 3:40am local time in Ghotki, Pakistan. A train stopping at the Sarhad rail station was hit from behind by a train that missed a signal. The collision caused several of the cars to derail...
, Ghotki, Pakistan: A chain reaction accident caused by one train missing a signal and colliding into another results in three trains crashed and over 150 people dead. - July 14, 2005 – GliwiceGliwiceGliwice is a city in Upper Silesia in southern Poland, near Katowice. Gliwice is the west district of the Upper Silesian Metropolitan Union – a metropolis with a population of 2 million...
, Poland: two truck trains crash entering the station, one motorman dies, one motorman is seriously wounded. - July 26, 2005 – Vienna rail crash - passenger train of the ÖBB crashes into a cargo train, injuring 43 people.
- July 28, 2005 – Jaunpur train bombing, Janpur, India: A bomb explodes on a train in Uttar PradeshUttar PradeshUttar Pradesh abbreviation U.P. , is a state located in the northern part of India. With a population of over 200 million people, it is India's most populous state, as well as the world's most populous sub-national entity...
, killing 13 people. - July 31, 2005 – ShenyangShenyangShenyang , or Mukden , is the capital and largest city of Liaoning Province in Northeast China. Currently holding sub-provincial administrative status, the city was once known as Shengjing or Fengtianfu...
, China: A train from Xi'anXi'anXi'an is the capital of the Shaanxi province, and a sub-provincial city in the People's Republic of China. One of the oldest cities in China, with more than 3,100 years of history, the city was known as Chang'an before the Ming Dynasty...
to ChangchunChangchunChangchun is the capital and largest city of Jilin province, located in the northeast of the People's Republic of China, in the center of the Songliao Plain. It is administered as a sub-provincial city with a population of 7,677,089 at the 2010 census under its jurisdiction, including counties and...
passes a sabotaged railway signalRailway signalA signal is a mechanical or electrical device erected beside a railway line to pass information relating to the state of the line ahead to train/engine drivers. The driver interprets the signal's indication and acts accordingly...
and collides with a freight train, killing 5 passengers. Officials state that some wiring was stolen from a nearby signal box causing the signal to malfunction. - August 1, 2005 – KilkisKilkisKilkis is an industrial city in Central Macedonia, Greece. As of 2001 there were 17,430 people living in the city proper, 24,812 people living in the municipal unit, and 56,336 in the municipality of Kilkis. It is also the capital city of the regional unit of Kilkis.-Name:Kilkis is located in a...
, Greece: a truck driver is struck by a train on a crossing and dies. The driver ignored crossing warnings. - August 2, 2005 – Raleigh, North CarolinaRaleigh, North CarolinaRaleigh is the capital and the second largest city in the state of North Carolina as well as the seat of Wake County. Raleigh is known as the "City of Oaks" for its many oak trees. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the city's 2010 population was 403,892, over an area of , making Raleigh...
, United States: Two people are killed when their truck is hit by an Amtrak train. The driver bypassed safety barriers. - August 5, 2005 – CN Rail Cheakamus River derailment, British ColumbiaBritish ColumbiaBritish Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...
: Nine cars of a CN Rail train derail into the Cheakamus RiverCheakamus RiverThe Cheakamus River is a tributary of the Squamish River, beginning on the west slopes of Outlier Peak in Garibaldi Provincial Park upstream from Cheakamus Lake on the southeastern outskirts of the resort area of Whistler. The river flows into Cheakamus Lake before exiting it and flowing...
near Whistler British ColumbiaBritish ColumbiaBritish Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...
. 40,000 litres of caustic soda enter the river, killing over 500,000 fish and greatly damaging the surrounding ecosystem. - September 17, 2005 – Chicago, Illinois, United States: A MetraMetraMetra is the commuter rail division of the Illinois Regional Transportation Authority. The system serves Chicago and its metropolitan area through 240 stations on 11 different rail lines. Throughout the 21st century, Metra has been the second busiest commuter rail system in the United States by...
commuter train traveling into Chicago derails, killing two and injuring 83. - October 3, 2005 – Datia train crashDatia train crashThe Datia train accident was a railroad accident that occurred on 3 October 2005 involving a passenger train near Datia in India's Madhya Pradesh Province...
, DatiaDatiaDatia is a small rural town and a municipality in Datia district in the state of Madhya Pradesh, India. It is the administrative center of Datia District. It was formerly the seat of the eponymous princely state in the British Raj. Datia is situated near Gwalior and on the border with Uttar...
, Madhya PradeshMadhya PradeshMadhya Pradesh , often called the Heart of India, is a state in central India. Its capital is Bhopal and Indore is the largest city....
, India: 16 die when a train travelling at six times the speed limit derails. - October 15, 2005 – Texarkana, ArkansasTexarkana, ArkansasAs of the census of 2000, there were 26,448 people, 10,384 households, and 7,040 families residing in the city. The population density was 830.5 people per square mile . There were 11,721 housing units at an average density of 368.1 per square mile...
, United States: Union Pacific train rear-ends another train, derailing and puncturing a tank car containing propylenePropylenePropene, also known as propylene or methylethylene, is an unsaturated organic compound having the chemical formula C3H6. It has one double bond, and is the second simplest member of the alkene class of hydrocarbons, and it is also second in natural abundance.-Properties:At room temperature and...
. The leak reaches an ignition source at a nearby house, causing a massive explosion and subsequent fire. A 1 miles (1.6 km) radius is evacuated, and one resident is killed. - October 23, 2005 – Eurostar 9410 derailmentEurostar 9410 derailmentThe Eurostar 9410 derailment was a minor railroad accident that occurred in Bari, Apulia on October 24, 2005. While causing no deaths, it left 30 wounded and five critically injured...
. BariBariBari is the capital city of the province of Bari and of the Apulia region, on the Adriatic Sea, in Italy. It is the second most important economic centre of mainland Southern Italy after Naples, and is well known as a port and university city, as well as the city of Saint Nicholas...
province, ApuliaApuliaApulia is a region in Southern Italy bordering the Adriatic Sea in the east, the Ionian Sea to the southeast, and the Strait of Òtranto and Gulf of Taranto in the south. Its most southern portion, known as Salento peninsula, forms a high heel on the "boot" of Italy. The region comprises , and...
region, Italy. Eurostar ItaliaEurostar ItaliaEurostar Italia is a network of Italian high-speed inter-city trains, operated by Trenitalia . Trenitalia states that there are 130 train journeys per day....
train 9410, running from TarantoTarantoTaranto is a coastal city in Apulia, Southern Italy. It is the capital of the Province of Taranto and is an important commercial port as well as the main Italian naval base....
to MilanMilanMilan is the second-largest city in Italy and the capital city of the region of Lombardy and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while its urban area, roughly coinciding with its administrative province and the bordering Province of Monza and Brianza ,...
, derails between Acquaviva delle FontiAcquaviva delle FontiAcquaviva delle Fonti is a town and comune in the province of Bari, Apulia, southern Italy.-Buildings:Acquaviva Cathedral is located here, since 1986 a co-cathedral in the Diocese of Altamura-Gravina-Acquaviva delle Fonti.-Famous people from Acquaviva delle Fonti:*Roberto Colaninno,...
and Sannicandro di BariSannicandro di BariSannicandro di Bari is a town and comune in the province of Bari, Puglia, Italy.-Main sights:The main attraction of Sannicandro is the Hohenstaufen-Norman castle, located in the centre of the city. It is composed of two structures one within the other: the first one was built by the Byzantines in...
when subsidence due to heavy rain causes a bridge to collapse under it, leaving two bare rails spanning the 12 meter deep ravine. The train completes the crossing and comes to rest with its rear end suspended over the void. Nobody dies. - October 26, 2005 – The passenger train Shosholoza Meyl collides head on with the stationary Blue Train at Deelfontein station just outside of De Aar in the Northern Cape. Both trains derail. The Blue Train has much more damage than the Shosholoza Meyl. This particular set of the Blue Train (there are two sets) stayed out of service for the next two years.
- October 29, 2005 – Veligonda rail disaster, Veligonda, Andhra PradeshAndhra PradeshAndhra Pradesh , is one of the 28 states of India, situated on the southeastern coast of India. It is India's fourth largest state by area and fifth largest by population. Its capital and largest city by population is Hyderabad.The total GDP of Andhra Pradesh is $100 billion and is ranked third...
, India: At least 114 people die and many more are injured when part of the track is swept away by a flood, causing a train to derail. - November 23, 2005 - At 6.30 am a train hits a truck on a level crossing between TarsusTarsus (city)Tarsus is a historic city in south-central Turkey, 20 km inland from the Mediterranean Sea. It is part of the Adana-Mersin Metropolitan Area, the fourth-largest metropolitan area in Turkey with a population of 2.75 million...
and MersinMersin-Mersin today:Today, Mersin is a large city spreading out along the coast, with Turkey's second tallest skyscraper , huge hotels, an opera house, expensive real estate near the sea or up in the hills, and many other modern urban...
. 9 people die and 18 are injured. - November 26, 2005 – MoyMoy, HighlandThe village of Moy is situated between the villages of Daviot and Tomatin, in the Highland region of Scotland. It sits beside Loch Moy and used to have a railway station on the Inverness and Aviemore Direct Railway.-History:...
near InvernessInvernessInverness is a city in the Scottish Highlands. It is the administrative centre for the Highland council area, and is regarded as the capital of the Highlands of Scotland...
, Scotland. 9 are airlifted to hospital when a First ScotRail Class 170 DMU derails after hitting debris from a landslide caused by a local blizzard. - November 29, 2005 – ManiemaManiemaManiema is a province of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Its capital is Kindu.Following the 2005 Constitution , 25 new provinces were to be created from the 10 current provinces within 36 months . As of October 2010, this had not taken place...
, Democratic Republic of Congo: Over 60 people are sweptKindu rail accidentIn the Kindu rail accident on November 29, 2005, at least 60 people were killed when they were swept off the roof of a train into the river below as the train crossed a bridge in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo. After speaking with local officials in his region, Koloso Sumaili, the...
off the roof of a train by the beams of a bridge in the ManiemaManiemaManiema is a province of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Its capital is Kindu.Following the 2005 Constitution , 25 new provinces were to be created from the 10 current provinces within 36 months . As of October 2010, this had not taken place...
province. - December 25, 2005 – Shonai, YamagataShonai, Yamagatais a town located in Higashitagawa District, Yamagata, Japan. It was created by the merger of the towns of Amarume and Tachikawa in 2005.As of 2005, the town has an estimated population of 24,921 and the density of 249.26 persons per km²...
, Japan: According to Japanese Railroad official and NTV report, all 6 cars of AkitaAkita, Akitais the capital city of Akita Prefecture in the Tohoku region of Japan.As of June 11, 2005, with the merger of the former Kawabe District , the city has an estimated population of 323,310 and density of...
–NiigataNiigata, Niigatais the capital and the most populous city of Niigata Prefecture, Japan. It lies on the northwest coast of Honshu, the largest island of Japan, and faces the Sea of Japan and Sado Island....
InahoInahoThe is a limited express train service in Japan operated by East Japan Railway Company , which runs from to and .-Service pattern:Three return workings daily operate between Niigata and Akita, with a further four return workings between Niigata and Sakata.Inaho services stop at the following...
express train derail and three passenger cars are crushed, 5 people die and 32 are injured. Strong winter winds are thought to be the cause.
2006
- Jan 6, 2006 – Burbank, CaliforniaBurbank, CaliforniaBurbank is a city in Los Angeles County in Southern California, United States, north of downtown Los Angeles. The estimated population in 2010 was 103,340....
: A Metrolink train struck a passenger car at the dangerous Buena Vista crossing in this Los AngelesLos Angeles, CaliforniaLos Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
suburbSuburbThe word suburb mostly refers to a residential area, either existing as part of a city or as a separate residential community within commuting distance of a city . Some suburbs have a degree of administrative autonomy, and most have lower population density than inner city neighborhoods...
, killing 1. This confusing and badly designed crossing had several previous fatal and non-fatal accidents and Metrolink had ignored NTSB recommendations to improve it. - January 6, 2006 – Possum PointPossum PointPossum Point is a small peninsula in Northern Virginia that juts out into Quantico Creek and separates it from the Potomac River. It lies in a suburban area of Washington D.C.Dominion Virginia Power operates a power plant on the point...
, VirginiaVirginiaThe Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
, United States: - A broken CSX rail causes Virginia Railway ExpressVirginia Railway ExpressThe Virginia Railway Express is a regional/ commuter rail service that connects the Northern Virginia suburbs to Union Station in Washington, D.C., via two lines: the Fredericksburg Line from Fredericksburg, Virginia, and the Manassas Line from Broad Run/Airport station in Bristow,...
Train #304 to derail at Possum Point. The last 3 cars of the 6 cars come off the track but do not fall over. NTSB finds that CSX failed to post speed restrictions and repair/replace the track in a timely fashion. There are only a few minor injuries. - January 23, 2006 – Bioče train disasterBioce train disasterThe Bioče derailment was a train crash on January 23, 2006 in Montenegro. At least 45 people, including five children, were killed and another 184 injured...
: A passenger train crashes into a ravine near PodgoricaPodgoricaPodgorica , is the capital and largest city of Montenegro.Podgorica's favourable position at the confluence of the Ribnica and Morača rivers and the meeting point of the fertile Zeta Plain and Bjelopavlići Valley has encouraged settlement...
, Serbia and MontenegroSerbia and MontenegroSerbia and Montenegro was a country in southeastern Europe, formed from two former republics of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia : Serbia and Montenegro. Following the breakup of Yugoslavia, it was established in 1992 as a federation called the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia...
, killing 46 people and injuring 198. - January 29, 2006 – A broken rail causes a derailment near Jhelum in the Punjab, killing 2 people and injuring 29. Poor maintenance is officially being cited as cause of the accident; sabotage is suspected by some authorities. The government inquiry later blames defective and aging rails.
- February 16, 2006 – Serres, GreeceSerres, GreeceSérres is a city in Macedonia, Greece. It is situated in a fertile plain at an elevation of about 70 m, some 24 km northeast of the Strymon river and 69 km north-east of the Macedonian capital, Thessaloniki. The Rhodope Mountains rise to the north and east of the city...
: An inter-city train strikes a truck at a grade crossing near SerresSerres, GreeceSérres is a city in Macedonia, Greece. It is situated in a fertile plain at an elevation of about 70 m, some 24 km northeast of the Strymon river and 69 km north-east of the Macedonian capital, Thessaloniki. The Rhodope Mountains rise to the north and east of the city...
and derails. A passenger and the truck driver die, and 20 people on the train are injured. - February 17, 2006 – High winds derail six Canadian Pacific freight cars on the Saint-Laurent Railway BridgeSaint-Laurent Railway BridgeThe Saint-Laurent Railway Bridge is a Canadian Pacific railway bridge linking LaSalle to the Kahnawake Mohawk Reserve, just upstream of the Mercier Bridge. It is used by the AMT...
between MontrealMontrealMontreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
and Kahnawake, Quebec, leaving them dangling precariously over the water. It takes several days to remove the cars, disrupting rail service. - March 10, 2006 – Hualien, TaiwanTaiwanTaiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...
- 5 railroad workers die when hit by a southbound train. - March 13, 2006 – Austin, TexasAustin, TexasAustin is the capital city of the U.S. state of :Texas and the seat of Travis County. Located in Central Texas on the eastern edge of the American Southwest, it is the fourth-largest city in Texas and the 14th most populous city in the United States. It was the third-fastest-growing large city in...
, United States: Tara Rose McAvoy, 18, the reigning Miss Deaf Texas, is killed by the snowplow on a 65-car Union Pacific freight train while trespassing on the tracks and text-messaging her parents. The train sounds its horn repeatedly and attempts to apply the emergency brakes but did not stop in time. - April 5, 2006 – Indian Orchard, Massachusetts, United States: Patrick Deans, 18, High School football player, is struck and killed by a CSX freight train while trespassing on the tracks. Two CSX trains are passing at the time. Patrick escapes one train and is struck by the other.
- April 15, 2006 – Gubug, Java: 13 people die and 26 are injured as two trains collide and wreckage falls into a paddy field. One Swiss man is among the injured. Human error by the driver is officially blamed.
- April 28, 2006 – Victoria, Australia: A V/LineV/LineV/Line is a not for profit regional passenger train and coach service in Victoria, Australia. It was created after the split-up of VicRail in 1983. V/Line is owned by the V/Line Corporation which is a Victorian State Government statutory authority...
VLocity high-speed train is derailed when struck by an 18 wheeler truck, killing 2 people and injuring 28 on the Ballarat to AraratArarat, VictoriaArarat is a city in south-west Victoria, Australia, about west of Melbourne, on the Western Highway on the eastern slopes of the Ararat Hills and Cemetery Creek valley between Victoria's Western District and the Wimmera...
line. - May 25, 2006 – Lismore, VictoriaLismore, VictoriaLismore is a town in Victoria, Australia, located on the Hamilton Highway west of Melbourne. It is part of the Corangamite Shire local government area.The town is located at a point equidistant from Geelong and Warrnambool....
: truck fails to stop at level crossing, derailing trains and causing massive pileup of wagons. Mist/fog is factor. - June 12, 2006 – NetanyaNetanyaNetanya is a city in the Northern Centre District of Israel, and is the capital of the surrounding Sharon plain. It is located north of Tel Aviv, and south of Haifa between the 'Poleg' stream and Wingate Institute in the south and the 'Avichail' stream in the north.Its of beaches have made the...
, IsraelIsraelThe State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
: A passenger train from Tel AvivTel AvivTel Aviv , officially Tel Aviv-Yafo , is the second most populous city in Israel, with a population of 404,400 on a land area of . The city is located on the Israeli Mediterranean coastline in west-central Israel. It is the largest and most populous city in the metropolitan area of Gush Dan, with...
to HaifaHaifaHaifa is the largest city in northern Israel, and the third-largest city in the country, with a population of over 268,000. Another 300,000 people live in towns directly adjacent to the city including the cities of the Krayot, as well as, Tirat Carmel, Daliyat al-Karmel and Nesher...
derails after colliding with a lorry on a level crossingLevel crossingA level crossing occurs where a railway line is intersected by a road or path onone level, without recourse to a bridge or tunnel. It is a type of at-grade intersection. The term also applies when a light rail line with separate right-of-way or reserved track crosses a road in the same fashion...
, killing 5 people and injuring more than 100. - June 14, 2006 – Madera, CaliforniaMadera, CaliforniaMadera is a city in and the county seat of Madera County, California, United States. It is a principal city of the Madera–Chowchilla Metropolitan Statistical Area, which encompasses all of Madera County, and Metropolitan Fresno. It is located in California's San Joaquin Valley. As of the 2010...
: Two BNSF RailwayBNSF RailwayThe BNSF Railway is a wholly owned subsidiary of Berkshire Hathaway Inc., and is headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas. It is one of seven North American Class I railroads and the second largest freight railroad network in North America, second only to the Union Pacific Railroad, its primary...
freight trains collide head-onHead-on collisionA head-on collision is one where the front ends of two ships, trains, planes or vehicles hit each other, as opposed to a side collision or rear-end collision.-Rail transport:...
due to one of the trains running a red signal. One of the train's crews, the one that ran the red, is suspected to be high on cocaine. There was a camera on board one of the locomotives involved in the collsion; the video of the collision is widely available on YouTubeYouTubeYouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....
and related sites. - July 1, 2006 – Abington, PennsylvaniaAbington Township, Montgomery County, PennsylvaniaAbington Township is a township in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 55,310 in as of the 2010 census.Abington Township is one of Montgomery County's oldest communities dating back to before 1700 and being incorporated in 1704. It is home to some of the county's...
: Two passenger trains collided on a single track, injuring three dozen. - July 3, 2006 – Valencia metro accident2006 Valencia metro accidentThe Valencia Metro derailment occurred in Valencia, Spain's third largest city, on July 3, 2006, at 1 p.m. CEST between Jesús and Plaça d'Espanya stations on the Line 1 of the Valencia Metro mass transit system...
in ValenciaValencia (city in Spain)Valencia or València is the capital and most populous city of the autonomous community of Valencia and the third largest city in Spain, with a population of 809,267 in 2010. It is the 15th-most populous municipality in the European Union...
, Spain: A Valencia Metro train derails after leaving Jesús station, killing 41 people and injuring at least 47. The records of the train's black boxBlack boxA black box is a device, object, or system whose inner workings are unknown; only the input, transfer, and output are known characteristics.The term black box can also refer to:-In science and technology:*Black box theory, a philosophical theory...
show that the train passed a bend at 80 km/h, above the speed limit of 40 km/h. - July 11, 2006 – A series of bomb attacks strikes commuter trainsMumbai Suburban RailwayThe Mumbai Suburban Railway system, part of the public transport system of Mumbai, is provided for by the state-run Indian Railways' two zonal Western Railways and Central Railways. The system carries more than 6.99 million commuters on a daily basis. It has the highest passenger densities of any...
in MumbaiMumbaiMumbai , formerly known as Bombay in English, is the capital of the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is the most populous city in India, and the fourth most populous city in the world, with a total metropolitan area population of approximately 20.5 million...
(Bombay), India, killing at least 200 people. - July 11, 2006 – A train collide with crowded bus at an unmanned railroad crossing at Akkelpur, Jaipurhat, BangladeshBangladeshBangladesh , officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh is a sovereign state located in South Asia. It is bordered by India on all sides except for a small border with Burma to the far southeast and by the Bay of Bengal to the south...
, killing at least 33 people, another 30 are injured. - July 14, 2006 – LuxembourgLuxembourgLuxembourg , officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg , is a landlocked country in western Europe, bordered by Belgium, France, and Germany. It has two principal regions: the Oesling in the North as part of the Ardennes massif, and the Gutland in the south...
: A man suspected to have a mental disorder sets a newspaper alight aboard a train, resulting in a fire that injures 31 people, with 7 suffering critical injuries. - August 18, 2006 – two carriages catch fire on the Chennai-Hyderabad Express near Secundrabad station
- August 21, 2006 – EgyptEgyptEgypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
: Two trains collide in the town of QalyoubQalyoub rail crashThe Qalyoub train collision occurred at a converging junction in Qalyoub to the north of Cairo in Egypt on 21 August 2006, when two commuter trains collided during the morning rush hour, killing 58 people and injuring over 140.- Overview :...
, 12 miles (20 kilometers) north of CairoCairoCairo , is the capital of Egypt and the largest city in the Arab world and Africa, and the 16th largest metropolitan area in the world. Nicknamed "The City of a Thousand Minarets" for its preponderance of Islamic architecture, Cairo has long been a centre of the region's political and cultural life...
, killing 57 people and injuring 128. - August 21, 2006 – Spain: A speeding eastbound RENFERENFERenfe Operadora is the state-owned company which operates freight and passenger trains on the 1668-mm "Iberian gauge" and 1435-mm "European gauge" networks of the Spanish national railway infrastructure company ADIF .- History :The name RENFE is derived from that of the former Spanish National...
intercity train derails in Villada, 40 km west of PalenciaPalenciaPalencia is a city south of Tierra de Campos, in north-northwest Spain, the capital of the province of Palencia in the autonomous community of Castile-Leon...
, leaving six people dead and 36 injured. - August 27, 2006 – ZimbabweZimbabweZimbabwe is a landlocked country located in the southern part of the African continent, between the Zambezi and Limpopo rivers. It is bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the southwest, Zambia and a tip of Namibia to the northwest and Mozambique to the east. Zimbabwe has three...
: 5 people die in a head-on collisionHead-on collisionA head-on collision is one where the front ends of two ships, trains, planes or vehicles hit each other, as opposed to a side collision or rear-end collision.-Rail transport:...
between a passenger train and a freight train 30 km south of Victoria FallsVictoria FallsThe Victoria Falls or Mosi-oa-Tunya is a waterfall located in southern Africa on the Zambezi River between the countries of Zambia and Zimbabwe.-Introduction:...
. - September 4, 2006 – EgyptEgyptEgypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
: A passenger train collides with a freight train north of CairoCairoCairo , is the capital of Egypt and the largest city in the Arab world and Africa, and the 16th largest metropolitan area in the world. Nicknamed "The City of a Thousand Minarets" for its preponderance of Islamic architecture, Cairo has long been a centre of the region's political and cultural life...
, killing five people and injuring 30.
- September 22, 2006 – LathenLathenSamtgemeinde Lathen is a Samtgemeinde in the district Emsland in Lower Saxony, Germany.Following towns are situated in Lathen:...
, EmslandEmslandLandkreis Emsland is a district in Lower Saxony, Germany named after the river Ems. It is bounded by the districts of Leer, Cloppenburg and Osnabrück, the state of North Rhine-Westphalia , the district of Bentheim and the Netherlands .- History :For a long time the region of the Emsland was...
, Germany: 21 passengers and two maintenance workers die and many more are injured when a German TransrapidTransrapidTransrapid is a German high-speed monorail train using magnetic levitation. Based on a patent from 1934, planning of the Transrapid system started in 1969. The test facility for the system in Emsland, Germany was completed in 1987...
train collides with a maintenance of way vehicle on the system's test track near the Netherlands border. See 2006 Lathen maglev train accident2006 Lathen maglev train accidentThe Lathen train collision occurred on 22 September 2006 when a Transrapid magnetic levitation train collided with a maintenance vehicle near Lathen, Germany, killing 23 people...
.
- October 11, 2006 – 2006 Zoufftgen rail crash2006 Zoufftgen rail crashThe 2006 Zoufftgen train collision occurred around 11.45 am on 11 October 2006, near Zoufftgen, Moselle, France, some 20 metres from the border with Luxembourg, on the Metz – Zoufftgen line. Two trains collided head-on while one track of a double track line was out of service for maintenance...
, near MetzMetzMetz is a city in the northeast of France located at the confluence of the Moselle and the Seille rivers.Metz is the capital of the Lorraine region and prefecture of the Moselle department. Located near the tripoint along the junction of France, Germany, and Luxembourg, Metz forms a central place...
, France: Passenger and freight trains collide head-on at ZoufftgenZoufftgenZoufftgen is a commune in the Moselle department in Lorraine in north-eastern France.As at 1999 its population was 608.-2006 rail crash:On the morning of 11 October 2006 a passenger train and a goods train collided head-on, killing six people....
, Moselle, close to the LuxembourgLuxembourgLuxembourg , officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg , is a landlocked country in western Europe, bordered by Belgium, France, and Germany. It has two principal regions: the Oesling in the North as part of the Ardennes massif, and the Gutland in the south...
border. 5 people die, including the drivers of both trains, and 20 are injured. The accident is ascribed to human error in the controlling signalling centre in Luxembourg. - October 17, 2006 – Rome Metro collision2006 Rome metro crashThe 2006 Rome Metro crash occurred on October 17, 2006 at 9:37am local time , when one train ploughed in another train as it unloaded passengers at the Piazza Vittorio Emanuele II underground station in the city centre, killing a 30-year-old Italian woman, named Alessandra Lisi, and injuring about...
, Italy: Two metro trains collide at Rome's Vittorio Emanuele metroRome MetroThe Rome Metro is an underground public transportation system that operates in Rome, Italy and opened in 1955. There are currently two metro lines, the A line and the B line . A third line, the green C line, and a new branch of the B line, are currently under construction. Plans have also been...
station, killing at least one person and injuring around 60. - October 20, 2006 – New Brighton, PennsylvaniaNew Brighton, PennsylvaniaNew Brighton is a borough in Beaver County, Pennsylvania, United States, located along the Beaver River northwest of Pittsburgh. There are deposits of coal and clay in the vicinity. In the past, articles produced here included pottery, bricks, sewer pipe, glass, flour, twine, lead kegs,...
- A Norfolk Southern unit train of tank cars containing ethanolEthanolEthanol, also called ethyl alcohol, pure alcohol, grain alcohol, or drinking alcohol, is a volatile, flammable, colorless liquid. It is a psychoactive drug and one of the oldest recreational drugs. Best known as the type of alcohol found in alcoholic beverages, it is also used in thermometers, as a...
derails on a bridge over the Beaver RiverBeaver River (Pennsylvania)The Beaver River is a tributary of the Ohio River in Western Pennsylvania in the United States with a length of approximately 21 mi . It flows through a historically important coal-producing region north of Pittsburgh...
. The resulting fire burns for days and forces some evacuations. - November 9, 2006 – India: 40 people die and 15 are injured in a West Bengal rail accident.
- November 9, 2006 – Baxter, CaliforniaCaliforniaCalifornia is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
- Six cars of a runaway maintenance train derail, killing two of the crew. - November 13, 2006 – Faure level crossing accident, near Somerset West, South Africa: A MetrorailMetrorail (South Africa)Metrorail is an operator of commuter rail services in the major urban areas of South Africa. It is a division of the Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa , a state-owned enterprise which is responsible for most passenger rail services in South Africa...
train smashes into a truck carrying farm workers at a level crossing, killing 27 people. - November 20, 2006 – India: A bomb explodes on a train near Belacoba station in West BengalWest BengalWest Bengal is a state in the eastern region of India and is the nation's fourth-most populous. It is also the seventh-most populous sub-national entity in the world, with over 91 million inhabitants. A major agricultural producer, West Bengal is the sixth-largest contributor to India's GDP...
, India, killing 7 people and injuring 53. See 2006 West Bengal train disaster2006 West Bengal train disasterThe 2006 West Bengal train disaster was a fatal suspected terrorist explosion on a train travelling between New Jalpaiguri and Haldibari that occurred on November 20, 2006, when the train was in a remote part of West Bengal State, India...
. - November 20, 2006 – A train passes a red signalSignal passed at dangerA Signal passed at danger , in British railway terminology, occurs when a train passes a stop signal without authority to do so. It is a term primarily used within the British Railway Industry, although it can be applied worldwide.-Categories of SPAD:...
causing a head-on collisionHead-on collisionA head-on collision is one where the front ends of two ships, trains, planes or vehicles hit each other, as opposed to a side collision or rear-end collision.-Rail transport:...
in RotterdamRotterdamRotterdam is the second-largest city in the Netherlands and one of the largest ports in the world. Starting as a dam on the Rotte river, Rotterdam has grown into a major international commercial centre...
. The passenger train is empty and none are injured; thereis extensive damage to the rail track and its overhead power lines - November 21, 2006 – Arnhem rail crashArnhem rail crashIn the Arnhem rail crash of 21 November 2006 – Arnhem, Netherlands - A cargo train driver ignored a red signal and collided almost head-on into a passenger train which was about to enter the railway station, injuring 31.- See also :...
, Netherlands - A train passes a red signalSignal passed at dangerA Signal passed at danger , in British railway terminology, occurs when a train passes a stop signal without authority to do so. It is a term primarily used within the British Railway Industry, although it can be applied worldwide.-Categories of SPAD:...
causing a head-on collisionHead-on collisionA head-on collision is one where the front ends of two ships, trains, planes or vehicles hit each other, as opposed to a side collision or rear-end collision.-Rail transport:...
. - November 24, 2006 – DrnišDrnišDrniš is a town in Croatia, located in inland Dalmatia at halfway between Šibenik and Knin. Its municipality population is 8,595 , with 3,332 in the town itself and the rest in two dozen surrounding villages...
, CroatiaCroatiaCroatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ...
- A HŽ ICNRegioSwingerThe RegioSwinger is a tilting Diesel Multiple Unit passenger train used for fast regional traffic on unelectrified lines.- Development and Service :...
tilting train number 521 collides with a lorry loaded with KnaufKnauf USG SystemsKnauf USG Systems is the legal entity of a manufacturer of cement board systems under the name Aquapanel.Knauf USG Systems was established in 2002. The company is a joint venture between Knauf GmbH and USG, both suppliers of systems and building materials on a worldwide basis. Knauf USG Systems is...
cement boards at the railroad crossing that is not equipped with ramp or warning lights. Train engineer dies instantly, the lorry driver sustains severe injuries and survives. Train composition suffers major damage and is subsequently written off the Croatian Railways' rolling stock. - November 30, 2006 – North Baltimore, OhioNorth Baltimore, OhioNorth Baltimore is a village in Wood County, Ohio, United States. The population was 3,361 at the 2000 census.North Baltimore is south of Toledo.-Geography:North Baltimore is located at ....
- 15 cars carrying steel derail when the train inadvertently switches to a side track. These cars then impact a coal train on a parallel set of tracks, causing four of its cars to also derail. The PUCO blames the accident on a chain hanging from one of the rolling stock, which engaged a switch handle on the tracks, causing a shift of the rails. Three people who were in vehicles waiting for the train to pass are injured as a result of the accident, none seriously. - December 1, 2006 – BiharBiharBihar is a state in eastern India. It is the 12th largest state in terms of geographical size at and 3rd largest by population. Almost 58% of Biharis are below the age of 25, which is the highest proportion in India....
, India - BhágalpurBhagalpur DistrictBhagalpur district is one of the thirty-eight districts of Bihar state, India, and Bhagalpur town is the administrative headquarters of this district.-Geography:...
in the Ganges a portion of the 150-year-old 'Ulta Pul' bridge being dismantled collapses over a passing train of India's Eastern Railways, killing 35 people and injuring 17. - December 13, 2006 – Avio, a freight train operated by Trenitalia passes a red signal and crashes on a freight train of the private company Rail Traction Company. Two Trenitalia engineers die in the violent crash
- December 28, 2006 – In the industrial zone of CuautitlánCuautitlánCuautitlán is a city and municipality in the State of Mexico, just north of the northern tip of the Federal District within the Greater Mexico City urban area. The city has engulfed most of the municipality, making the two synonymous...
in Mexico CityMexico CityMexico City is the Federal District , capital of Mexico and seat of the federal powers of the Mexican Union. It is a federal entity within Mexico which is not part of any one of the 31 Mexican states but belongs to the federation as a whole...
, 24 people die when their bus collides with a 36-wagon freight train. Another 12 passengers arehurt. Police arrest the bus driver who reportedly tried to flee the scene.
2007
- January 4, 2007 – Hatay ProvinceHatay ProvinceHatay Province is a province in southern Turkey, on the Mediterranean coast. It is bordered by Syria to the south and east and the Turkish provinces of Adana and Osmaniye to the north. The province is part of Çukurova, a geographical, economical and cultural region that covers the provinces of...
, Turkey: A freight train crashes into a truck carrying farm workers at a railroad crossing in Hatay ProvinceHatay ProvinceHatay Province is a province in southern Turkey, on the Mediterranean coast. It is bordered by Syria to the south and east and the Turkish provinces of Adana and Osmaniye to the north. The province is part of Çukurova, a geographical, economical and cultural region that covers the provinces of...
, Turkey, killing 7 people and injuring 19. - January 10, 2007 – Woburn, MassachusettsWoburn, MassachusettsWoburn is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, USA. The population was 38,120 at the 2010 census. Woburn is located north of Boston, Massachusetts, and just south of the intersection of I-93 and I-95.- History :...
- A MBTA Commuter train crashes into a work crew, killing two and injuring three crew members. 40 passengers on the train are also injured. - January 16, 2007 – Brooks, Kentucky train derailment - A CSX freight train derails in Brooks, KentuckyBrooks, KentuckyBrooks is a census-designated place in Bullitt County, Kentucky, United States. The population was 2,678 at the 2000 census. Brooks was struck by a tornado in 1996.-Geography:Brooks is located at ....
. - January 16, 2007 – Central JavaCentral JavaCentral Java is a province of Indonesia. The administrative capital is Semarang. It is one of six provinces on the island of Java.This province is the province of high Human Development in Indonesia and its Points Development Index countries is equivalent to Lebanon. The province of Central Java...
, IndonesiaIndonesiaIndonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
: The Senja Bengawan train derails, resulting in five fatalities. - February 6, 2007 – Hungary: An EU Regio passenger train traveling 101 km/h hits the end of a freight train between Almásfüzítő and Komárom stations. The driver of the passenger train dies, 4 passengers are injured.
- February 19, 2007 – Samjhauta Express bombings2007 Samjhauta Express bombingsThe 2007 Samjhauta Express bombings were a terrorist attack that occurred around midnight on 18 February 2007 on the Samjhauta Express, a twice-weekly train service connecting Delhi, India, and Lahore, Pakistan. Bombs were set off in two carriages, both filled with passengers, just after the train...
Deewana, near PanipatPanipatPanipat بَنِبَت is an ancient and historic city in Panipat district, Haryana state, India. It is 90 km north from Delhi and 169 km south of Chandigarh on NH-1. The three battles fought at the city were turning points in Indian history. The city is famous in India by the name of "City of...
, Haryana StateHaryanaHaryana is a state in India. Historically, it has been a part of the Kuru region in North India. The name Haryana is found mentioned in the 12th century AD by the apabhramsha writer Vibudh Shridhar . It is bordered by Punjab and Himachal Pradesh to the north, and by Rajasthan to the west and south...
, India: At least 68 people die in a suspected bomb blast on the Delhi-Attari Special train (the "Friendship ExpressSamjhauta ExpressThe Samjhauta Express commonly called the Friendship Express, is a twice-weekly train Tuesdays and Fridays that runs between Delhi and Attari in India and Lahore in Pakistan. The word samjhauta means "Understanding","accord" and "compromise" in both Hindi and Urdu.Until the reopening of the Thar...
") near Deewana, about 80 kilometres (49.7 mi) north of DelhiDelhiDelhi , officially National Capital Territory of Delhi , is the largest metropolis by area and the second-largest by population in India, next to Mumbai. It is the eighth largest metropolis in the world by population with 16,753,265 inhabitants in the Territory at the 2011 Census...
, at around 23:55 local time.
- February 23, 2007 – Grayrigg rail crash, Cumbria, United Kingdom: A Virgin trainsVirgin TrainsVirgin Trains is a train operating company in the United Kingdom. It operates long-distance passenger services on the West Coast Main Line between London, the West Midlands, North West England, North Wales and Scotland...
PendolinoBritish Rail Class 390The Class 390 Pendolino is a type of train used in Great Britain. They are electric multiple units using Fiat's tilting train pendolino technology and built by Alstom. Fifty-three 9-car units were originally built for Virgin Trains from 2001 to 2004 for operation on the West Coast Main Line , with...
service from London Euston to Glasgow Central derails at Grayrigg Cottage near OxenholmeOxenholmeOxenholme is a village in England just south of the town of Kendal, with which it has begun to merge. It is best known for Oxenholme Lake District railway station on the West Coast Main Line. Because Oxenholme does not have its own church it is technically a hamlet.-History:Oxenholme station opened...
, CumbriaCumbriaCumbria , is a non-metropolitan county in North West England. The county and Cumbria County Council, its local authority, came into existence in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972. Cumbria's largest settlement and county town is Carlisle. It consists of six districts, and in...
. One woman dies. A set of pointsRailroad switchA railroad switch, turnout or [set of] points is a mechanical installation enabling railway trains to be guided from one track to another at a railway junction....
is thought to be the cause of the accident; the West Coast Main LineWest Coast Main LineThe West Coast Main Line is the busiest mixed-traffic railway route in Britain, being the country's most important rail backbone in terms of population served. Fast, long-distance inter-city passenger services are provided between London, the West Midlands, the North West, North Wales and the...
is closed for several days. - February 28, 2007 – Wind blows 10 passenger rail cars off the track near Turpan, China, killing 3 passengers and seriously injuring 2 others.
- March 6, 2007 – A freight train collides with a Diivarasekwa–Mbare regular route bus at a rail crossing on the outskirts of HarareHarareHarare before 1982 known as Salisbury) is the largest city and capital of Zimbabwe. It has an estimated population of 1,600,000, with 2,800,000 in its metropolitan area . Administratively, Harare is an independent city equivalent to a province. It is Zimbabwe's largest city and its...
, ZimbabweZimbabweZimbabwe is a landlocked country located in the southern part of the African continent, between the Zambezi and Limpopo rivers. It is bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the southwest, Zambia and a tip of Namibia to the northwest and Mozambique to the east. Zimbabwe has three...
, killing 34 and injuring another 30. - April 16, 2007 – A passenger train crashes into a minibus carrying local council officials at an unmanned rail crossing in southern India, killing 11 people and injuring the other 12 in the vehicle. Seven of the injured are hospitalized in serious condition.
- May 2, 2007 – 32 passengers are injured as the "Stolichniy Express" high-speed train derails near KievKievKiev or Kyiv is the capital and the largest city of Ukraine, located in the north central part of the country on the Dnieper River. The population as of the 2001 census was 2,611,300. However, higher numbers have been cited in the press....
, Ukraine. SabotageSabotageSabotage is a deliberate action aimed at weakening another entity through subversion, obstruction, disruption, or destruction. In a workplace setting, sabotage is the conscious withdrawal of efficiency generally directed at causing some change in workplace conditions. One who engages in sabotage is...
is suspected but investigation reveals that technicians tried and failed to quick-repair a switchSwitchIn electronics, a switch is an electrical component that can break an electrical circuit, interrupting the current or diverting it from one conductor to another....
in front of the approaching train. - June 5, 2007 – Kerang train crash, VictoriaVictoria (Australia)Victoria is the second most populous state in Australia. Geographically the smallest mainland state, Victoria is bordered by New South Wales, South Australia, and Tasmania on Boundary Islet to the north, west and south respectively....
, Australia. A B-Double truck collided with a Melbourne-bound passenger train 6 kilometres (3.7 mi) north of KerangKerang, VictoriaKerang is a rural town on the Loddon River in northern Victoria in Australia. It is the commercial centre to an irrigation district based on livestock, horticulture, lucerne and grain. It is located north-west of Melbourne on the Murray Valley Highway a few kilometres north of its intersection...
at the Murray Valley Highway level crossing, killing 11 rail passengers and injuring 23. - June 14, 2006 – Hrvatski Leskovac, CroatiaCroatiaCroatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ...
- A HŽ commuter train bound from ZagrebZagrebZagreb is the capital and the largest city of the Republic of Croatia. It is in the northwest of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slopes of the Medvednica mountain. Zagreb lies at an elevation of approximately above sea level. According to the last official census, Zagreb's city...
to KarlovacKarlovacKarlovac is a city and municipality in central Croatia. The city proper has a population of 49,082, while the municipality has a population of 59,395 inhabitants .Karlovac is the administrative centre of Karlovac County...
collides with a lorry on the railroad crossing. The lorry driver dies instantly, and the train engineer dies during the rescue workers' attempt to get him out of the wreckage. The crash is caused by the lorry driver who ignored light and bell warning about the incoming train. The train conductor sustained minor injuries. The locomotive suffered major structural damage and was written off the rolling stock. - June 15, 2007 – Two trains collided on the Italian island of SardiniaSardiniaSardinia is the second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea . It is an autonomous region of Italy, and the nearest land masses are the French island of Corsica, the Italian Peninsula, Sicily, Tunisia and the Spanish Balearic Islands.The name Sardinia is from the pre-Roman noun *sard[],...
, killing 3. - July 4, 2007 – A rail worker is killed by train numbered D1 near Jialing railway station. He saw the up train numbered T48 but did not see the down train numbered D1 from the other direction.
- July 16–17, 2007 – Two AmtrakAmtrakThe National Railroad Passenger Corporation, doing business as Amtrak , is a government-owned corporation that was organized on May 1, 1971, to provide intercity passenger train service in the United States. "Amtrak" is a portmanteau of the words "America" and "track". It is headquartered at Union...
Silver Star trains on the TampaTampa, FloridaTampa is a city in the U.S. state of Florida. It serves as the county seat for Hillsborough County. Tampa is located on the west coast of Florida. The population of Tampa in 2010 was 335,709....
to MiamiMiami, FloridaMiami is a city located on the Atlantic coast in southeastern Florida and the county seat of Miami-Dade County, the most populous county in Florida and the eighth-most populous county in the United States with a population of 2,500,625...
route crash into automobiles and derail in two separate instances, one in LakelandLakeland, FloridaLakeland is a city in Polk County, Florida, United States, located approximately midway between Tampa and Orlando along Interstate 4. According to the 2008 U.S. Census Bureau estimate, the city had a population of 94,406...
and one in Plant CityPlant City, FloridaPlant City is a city in Hillsborough County, Florida, in the United States, approximately midway between Brandon and Lakeland along Interstate 4. The population was 34,721 at the 2010 census....
. Four people in the automobile die in the first wreck; one in the automobile dies in the second accident. Nobody on either train is seriously injured. - July 16, 2007 – 15 carriages from a train carrying yellow phosphor derail and catch fire, releasing toxic fumes affecting 14 villages in a 90 km² area.
- July 30, 2007 – Two subway trains collide in Caracas, Venezuela in a tunnel near the Plaza Sucre station in western Caracas, leaving 1 person dead and 6 injured.
- August 1, 2007 – Benaleka train crashBenaleka train crashThe Benaleka train accident occurred on August 1, 2007 near Benaleka in the Democratic Republic of Congo, killing at least 100 people and seriously injuring 128 more...
, Kasai-OccidentalKasai-OccidentalKasai-Occidental is one of the ten provinces of the Democratic Republic of Congo. It borders the provinces of Bandundu to the west, Équateur to the north, Kasai-Oriental to the east, and Katanga to the southeast. To the south it borders the country of Angola...
province, Democratic Republic of the CongoDemocratic Republic of the CongoThe Democratic Republic of the Congo is a state located in Central Africa. It is the second largest country in Africa by area and the eleventh largest in the world...
. A passenger train derails killing about 100 people and injuring more than 200 others, many riding on the roof. Brake failureBrake (railway)Brakes are used on the cars of railway trains to enable deceleration, control acceleration or to keep them standing when parked. While the basic principle is familiar from road vehicle usage, operational features are more complex because of the need to control multiple linked carriages and to be...
. - August 7, 2007 – 32 passengers are injured when the Jodhpur-Howrah Express derails near Juhi Bridge, Kanpur, India.
- August 24, 2007 – Two persons die and five are injured when a locomotive and a freight train collide near ČortanovciCortanovciČortanovci is a village in Serbia. It is situated in the Inđija municipality, Srem District, Vojvodina province. The village has a Serb ethnic majority and its population numbering 2,308 people .Because of its pleasant climate and neighbouring Danube it is mostly visited by citizens who have...
, SerbiaSerbiaSerbia , officially the Republic of Serbia , is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe, covering the southern part of the Carpathian basin and the central part of the Balkans...
. - August 30, 2007 – 8 passengers die and 80 are injured when a commuter train collides with an empty train at Nova IguaçuNova IguaçuNova Iguaçu is a city in southeast Brazil in the Baixada Fluminense region of Rio de Janeiro state. It was the state's second largest city until Mesquita was split off, and now is the fourth largest after São Gonçalo and Duque de Caxias. It lies northwest of the city of Rio de Janeiro, on the...
near Rio de JaneiroRio de JaneiroRio de Janeiro , commonly referred to simply as Rio, is the capital city of the State of Rio de Janeiro, the second largest city of Brazil, and the third largest metropolitan area and agglomeration in South America, boasting approximately 6.3 million people within the city proper, making it the 6th...
, Brazil. - August 2007 – Mweka, Democratic Republic of the CongoMweka, Democratic Republic of the CongoMweka is a town in southern-central Democratic Republic of the Congo, situated on the Kasai railway line between Kananga and the Kasai River port of Ilebo ....
- a freight train derails killing about 100 people who were riding illegally on the wagons. - October 3, 2007 – Moving over the CSX east coast main line, the AmtrakAmtrakThe National Railroad Passenger Corporation, doing business as Amtrak , is a government-owned corporation that was organized on May 1, 1971, to provide intercity passenger train service in the United States. "Amtrak" is a portmanteau of the words "America" and "track". It is headquartered at Union...
Silver MeteorSilver MeteorThe Silver Meteor is a 1389-mile passenger train route operated by Amtrak in the Silver Service brand, running from New York City, New York, south to Miami, Florida, via the Northeast Corridor to Washington, D.C., thence via Richmond, Virginia; Fayetteville, North Carolina; North Charleston, South...
collided into a tractor-trailer after it attempted to cross a grade crossing in Port Wentworth, GeorgiaPort Wentworth, GeorgiaPort Wentworth is a city in Chatham County, Georgia, USA. The population was 5,359 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Savannah Metropolitan Statistical Area.-Geography:Port Wentworth is located at...
. No serious injuries are reported. - October 10, 2007 – Painesville, Ohio train derailment: A CSX train Q380-09 carrying ethanolEthanolEthanol, also called ethyl alcohol, pure alcohol, grain alcohol, or drinking alcohol, is a volatile, flammable, colorless liquid. It is a psychoactive drug and one of the oldest recreational drugs. Best known as the type of alcohol found in alcoholic beverages, it is also used in thermometers, as a...
and butaneButaneButane is a gas with the formula C4H10 that is an alkane with four carbon atoms. The term may refer to any of two structural isomers, or to a mixture of them: in the IUPAC nomenclature, however, butane refers only to the unbranched n-butane isomer; the other one being called "methylpropane" or...
derails in PainesvillePainesville, OhioAs of the 2010 Census, there were 19,563 people. As of the census of 2000, there were 17,503 people, 6,525 households, and 4,032 families residing in the city. The population density was 2,928.6 people per square mile . There were 6,933 housing units at an average density of 1,160.0 per square mile...
and Painesville Township, Ohio, causing an evacuation and fire that takes several days to burn out. Broken rail is suspected as the cause. - October 13, 2007 – 4 people die and more than 50 are injured when the rear carriageCarriageA carriage is a wheeled vehicle for people, usually horse-drawn; litters and sedan chairs are excluded, since they are wheelless vehicles. The carriage is especially designed for private passenger use and for comfort or elegance, though some are also used to transport goods. It may be light,...
s of the Probhati Express derails near DhakaDhakaDhaka is the capital of Bangladesh and the principal city of Dhaka Division. Dhaka is a megacity and one of the major cities of South Asia. Located on the banks of the Buriganga River, Dhaka, along with its metropolitan area, had a population of over 15 million in 2010, making it the largest city...
, BangladeshBangladeshBangladesh , officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh is a sovereign state located in South Asia. It is bordered by India on all sides except for a small border with Burma to the far southeast and by the Bay of Bengal to the south...
. - October 22, 2007 – Train carrying gasolineGasolineGasoline , or petrol , is a toxic, translucent, petroleum-derived liquid that is primarily used as a fuel in internal combustion engines. It consists mostly of organic compounds obtained by the fractional distillation of petroleum, enhanced with a variety of additives. Some gasolines also contain...
derails in Middlebury, Vermont causing an evacuation. At least one car catches fire and several others leak gasoline into Otter Creek (Vermont). - October 25, 2007 – A 15 year old boy dies when he is struck by a high speed train in SolnaSolna MunicipalitySolna Municipality is a municipality in Stockholm County in east central Sweden, located just north of the capital Stockholm. Its seat is located in the 'city' of Solna....
, Sweden while illegally crossing the railway. - October 29, 2007 – Two BNSF RailwayBNSF RailwayThe BNSF Railway is a wholly owned subsidiary of Berkshire Hathaway Inc., and is headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas. It is one of seven North American Class I railroads and the second largest freight railroad network in North America, second only to the Union Pacific Railroad, its primary...
trains derail in Clara City, MinnesotaClara City, MinnesotaAs of the census of 2000, there were 1,393 people, 591 households, and 372 families residing in the city. The population density was 729.0 people per square mile . There were 629 housing units at an average density of 329.2 per square mile...
, causing a hydrochloric acidHydrochloric acidHydrochloric acid is a solution of hydrogen chloride in water, that is a highly corrosive, strong mineral acid with many industrial uses. It is found naturally in gastric acid....
spill that prompts the evacuation of about 350 people. - November 3, 2007 – Two KTX trains collided inside Busan Station, with no casualties.
- November 9, 2007 – CSX train derailment in the District of Columbia dumps 10 rail cars of coalCoalCoal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock usually occurring in rock strata in layers or veins called coal beds or coal seams. The harder forms, such as anthracite coal, can be regarded as metamorphic rock because of later exposure to elevated temperature and pressure...
in the Anacostia RiverAnacostia RiverThe Anacostia River is a river in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States. It flows from Prince George's County in Maryland into Washington, D.C., where it joins with the Washington Channel to empty into the Potomac River at Buzzard Point. It is approximately long...
. Improperly secured, a free-rolling cut of hoppers from Bennington Yard rolls onto an out-of-service bridge, which collapses. - November 30, 2007 – AmtrakAmtrakThe National Railroad Passenger Corporation, doing business as Amtrak , is a government-owned corporation that was organized on May 1, 1971, to provide intercity passenger train service in the United States. "Amtrak" is a portmanteau of the words "America" and "track". It is headquartered at Union...
train No. 371, the Pere Marquette, strikes the last car of COFC freight train on the Norfolk Southern (ex-PRRPennsylvania RailroadThe Pennsylvania Railroad was an American Class I railroad, founded in 1846. Commonly referred to as the "Pennsy", the PRR was headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania....
) line near 65th Street in Chicago. Two people in the cab of P-42DC No. 8 are injured, and many passengers are injured, including three critical. The crumple zone design of the locomotive is effective and prevents worse results. The engineer was running at approximately 40 mph (17.9 m/s) in a 15 mph (6.7 m/s) zone due to confusion about the meaning of a signal. - December 19, 2007 – Mehrabpur train derailmentMehrabpur train derailmentThe Mehrabpur derailment was a fatal railway accident that occurred shortly after 02:00 local time on 19 December 2007 near the town of Mehrabpur in the Sindh province of Pakistan.-Incident:...
, MehrabpurMehrabpurMehrabpur is a city in the Naushahro Feroze District of Sindh in Pakistan.The city is administratively subdivided into 2 Union Concil....
, Pakistan: A crowded passenger express train derails down an embankment 200 kilometres (124.3 mi) north-east of KarachiKarachiKarachi is the largest city, main seaport and the main financial centre of Pakistan, as well as the capital of the province of Sindh. The city has an estimated population of 13 to 15 million, while the total metropolitan area has a population of over 18 million...
at about 2:20 am PSTPakistan Standard TimePakistan Time is the time zone for Pakistan. It is 5 hours ahead of GMT/UTC .The only tz database zone is Asia/Karachi.-History:The current Pakistan time was set up at midnight between 29 September and 30 1951...
, killing 35 people and injuring about 269, 10 critically.
2008
- January 7, 2008 – A freight train is derailed by a tornado near Harvard, IllinoisHarvard, IllinoisHarvard is a city located in McHenry County in the northeastern corner of the U.S. state of Illinois, approximately south of the Illinois/Wisconsin border. The population was 7,996 at the 2000 census...
. The entire incident was recorded on a surveillance camera on the front of the train. No one was injured. - February 1, 2008 – East Midlands Connect train from NottinghamNottinghamNottingham is a city and unitary authority in the East Midlands of England. It is located in the ceremonial county of Nottinghamshire and represents one of eight members of the English Core Cities Group...
to NorwichNorwichNorwich is a city in England. It is the regional administrative centre and county town of Norfolk. During the 11th century, Norwich was the largest city in England after London, and one of the most important places in the kingdom...
strikes a footbridge in its path at Barrow-on-Soar. A road vehicle had struck and damaged the bridge causing it to be foul of the line. Six passengers are on board; the driver has to be cut free from the driving cab. In October 2011, Network Rail is fined £80,000 and ordered to pay costs of £32,000. - February 5, 2008 – Two people die and one is injured in a chain reaction accident involving six vehicles and a 50 car train at a fog-obscured rail crossing in BoswellBoswell, IndianaBoswell is a town in Grant Township, Benton County, Indiana, United States. The population was 778 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Lafayette, Indiana Metropolitan Statistical Area.-History:...
, about 30 miles (48.3 km) west of Lafayette, IndianaLafayette, IndianaLafayette is a city in and the county seat of Tippecanoe County, Indiana, United States, northwest of Indianapolis. As of the 2010 census, the city had a total population of 67,140. West Lafayette, on the other side of the Wabash River, is home to Purdue University, which has a large impact on...
. The rural crossing has seen five other crashes, two of which were fatal, since 1984. An FRAFederal Railroad AdministrationThe Federal Railroad Administration is an agency in the United States Department of Transportation. The agency was created by the Department of Transportation Act of 1966...
safety review is now planned for this crossing. The other fatalities were on October 10, 1984 and February 7, 1986 between a train and a truck, in which both truck drivers and the truck's passenger in the 1984 crash died. - February 29, 2008 – Nine people die in a fire on board Bulgarian State RailwaysBulgarian State RailwaysThe Bulgarian State Railways are Bulgaria's state railway company and the largest railway carrier in the country, established as an entity in 1885. The company's headquarters are located in the capital Sofia. Since the 1990s the BDZ has met serious competition from automotive transport...
' train No.2637 travelling from SofiaSofiaSofia is the capital and largest city of Bulgaria and the 12th largest city in the European Union with a population of 1.27 million people. It is located in western Bulgaria, at the foot of Mount Vitosha and approximately at the centre of the Balkan Peninsula.Prehistoric settlements were excavated...
to the north-eastern town of Kardam in Dobrich region. The fire starts in a couchette carriage with 35 people in it as the train enters the town of Cherven bryagCherven BryagCherven Bryag is a town in northern Bulgaria, a capital of the Cherven Bryag municipality, Pleven Province. It is situated on the right shore of the Zlatna Panega in river Iskar, 137 km north-east of Sofia, 53 km south-west of Pleven, 12 km north-west of Lukovit, 56 km east...
around midnight, and spreads to a sleeping coach with 27 people. The fire takes more than three hours to extinguish. Among the victims of the fire is Rasho Rashev, the director of Bulgaria's National Archaeological Institute. Bulgarian government declares March 5, 2008 a day of mourning in memory of the victims of the deadly fire. - March 1, 2008 – Containers are blown off a train by wind between TringTringTring is a small market town and also a civil parish in the Chiltern Hills in Hertfordshire, England. Situated north-west of London and linked to London by the old Roman road of Akeman Street, by the modern A41, by the Grand Union Canal and by rail lines to Euston Station, Tring is now largely a...
and CheddingtonCheddingtonCheddington is a village and civil parish in the Aylesbury Vale district of Buckinghamshire. The parish has an area of . The village is about 5 miles north-east of Aylesbury and three miles north of Tring in Hertfordshire...
; also ShapShapShap is a linear village and civil parish located amongst fells and isolated dales in Eden district, Cumbria, England. The village lies along the A6 road and the West Coast Main Line, and is near to the M6 motorway...
. - March 9, 2008 – A FerrobairesFerrobairesFerrobaires S.A. is the commercial name of a public railway company which operates extensive long-distance passenger trains throughout Buenos Aires Province in Argentina. Its official corporate name is Unidad Ejecutora del Plan Ferroviario Provincial , or Executing Unit of the Provincial Railway...
passenger train going from Buenos AiresBuenos AiresBuenos Aires is the capital and largest city of Argentina, and the second-largest metropolitan area in South America, after São Paulo. It is located on the western shore of the estuary of the Río de la Plata, on the southeastern coast of the South American continent...
to Mar del PlataMar del PlataMar del Plata is an Argentine city located on the coast of the Atlantic Ocean, south of Buenos Aires. Mar del Plata is the second largest city of Buenos Aires Province. The name "Mar del Plata" had apparently the sense of "sea of the Río de la Plata region" or "adjoining sea to the Río de la Plata"...
strikes an El Rápido Argentino bus going from Mar de AjóMar de AjóMar de Ajó is a coastal city in Buenos Aires Province, Argentina, and is located in the southern end of the seaside La Costa Partido .-History and overview:...
to San Miguel (Greater Buenos Aires) at a crossing on the outskirts of DoloresDolores, Buenos AiresDolores is a town in Buenos Aires Province, Argentina. It is the head town of the Dolores Partido.The town settlement was officially founded by Ramón Lara on August 21, 1817.-2008 March train disaster:...
, province of Buenos Aires, ArgentinaArgentinaArgentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
. The bus had disregarded the active warning devices on the railroad crossing of Provincial Highway 63. 17 people die, 40 are injured. - March 25, 2008 – Canton, MassachusettsCanton, MassachusettsCanton is a town in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 21,561 at the 2010 census. Canton is part of Greater Boston, about 15 miles southwest of downtown Boston.- History :...
- A MBTA train crashes into a runaway box car at Canton Junction station injuring 150 people on board. - April 9, 2008 - A Sabah State RailwaySabah State RailwaySabah State Railway is a railway system and operator in the state of Sabah in Malaysia. It is the currently the only rail transport system operating on the island of Borneo. The railway consists of a single 134 km line from Tanjung Aru, near Kota Kinabalu, to the town of Tenom, in the...
train plunges 10 metres into Padas River after derailment caused by a landslide near TenomTenomTenom is a town located in Interior Division of Sabah, east Malaysia on the island of Borneo. The town was called Fort Birch in the early colonial period. Its population was estimated to be around 46,200 in the year 2000....
, Malaysia killing 2 passengers. - April 26, 2008 – An InterCityExpressInterCityExpressThe Intercity-Express or ICE is a system of high-speed trains predominantly running in Germany and neighbouring countries. It is the highest service category offered by DB Fernverkehr and is the flagship of Deutsche Bahn...
train runs into a herd of sheep that had wandered onto the tracks at the mouth of the LandrückentunnelLandrückentunnelThe Landrücken Tunnel is a railway tunnel on the Hanover-Würzburg high-speed rail line. With a length of it is the longest tunnel in Germany.- Geography :The tunnel is in east Hessen between the stations of Fulda and Würzburg...
, Germany's longest rail tunnel, on the Hanover-Würzburg high-speed rail line near FuldaFuldaFulda is a city in Hesse, Germany; it is located on the river Fulda and is the administrative seat of the Fulda district .- Early Middle Ages :...
. The train stops 1300 metres (4,265.1 ft) into the tunnel, 19 of the train's 135 passengers are injured slightly, four suffer fractures. - April 28, 2008 – China Railway train T195 accident Train No. T195 carrying approximately 1200 passengers from Beijing to QingdaoQingdao' also known in the West by its postal map spelling Tsingtao, is a major city with a population of over 8.715 million in eastern Shandong province, Eastern China. Its built up area, made of 7 urban districts plus Jimo city, is home to about 4,346,000 inhabitants in 2010.It borders Yantai to the...
derails at a section of temporary detour tracks Zhoucun-Wangcun, Hejiacun, on the outskirts of ZiboZiboZibo is a prefecture-level city in central Shandong province, People's Republic of China. It borders the provincial capital of Jinan to the west, Laiwu and Tai'an to the southwest, Linyi to the south, Weifang to the east, Dongying to the northeast, and Binzhou the north.Located in the middle part...
, ShandongShandong' is a Province located on the eastern coast of the People's Republic of China. Shandong has played a major role in Chinese history from the beginning of Chinese civilization along the lower reaches of the Yellow River and served as a pivotal cultural and religious site for Taoism, Chinese...
at approximately 4:38am. It is then struck by the No. 5034 (YantaiYantaiYantai is a prefecture-level city in northeastern Shandong province, People's Republic of China. Located on the southern coast of the Bohai Sea and the eastern coast of the Laizhou Bay, Yantai borders the cities of Qingdao and Weihai to the southwest and east respectively.The largest fishing...
to XuzhouXuzhouXuzhou , otherwise known as Pengcheng in ancient times, is a major city in and the fourth largest prefecture-level city of Jiangsu province, People's Republic of China...
) passenger train at approximately 4:41am, also with approximately 1200 passengers aboard. The detour tracks had a lower speed limit of 80 km/h, but the speed limit was not delivered to T195's operation monitor system or driver, and the driver was following the regular speed limit; T195 was running at the regular speed of 131 km/h before it derailed. Fourteen passenger cars are crushed, 72 people die and 416 are injured. - April, 2008 – Larissa derailment, Greece - passenger train derails; 28 of 174 passengers injured
- May 5, 2008 – A 20 car freight train carrying illegal passengers and including Kordofan University students derails on the outskirts of Al-FoulaAl-FoulaEl-Fula is a town in South Kordufan, Sudan.It is the home of the University of West Kordofan....
, South Kordofan, SudanSudanSudan , officially the Republic of the Sudan , is a country in North Africa, sometimes considered part of the Middle East politically. It is bordered by Egypt to the north, the Red Sea to the northeast, Eritrea and Ethiopia to the east, South Sudan to the south, the Central African Republic to the...
, killing 14 and injuring 28. - May 10, 2008 – The locomotive and three cars of Romanian National Railway Company (CFR) passenger train No 1661 going from Bucharest to Iași derails at a defective switch near Valea Calugareasca station in Prahova county around 16:55 local time. Two of the cars are severely damaged. The train's speed is 68 km/h, below the 70 km/h maximum speed limit on that sector of 70 km/h. A 17 year old girl dies and four other persons are injured.
- May 28, 2008 – Boston MBTA Green LineGreen Line (MBTA)The Green Line is a streetcar system run by the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority in the Boston, Massachusetts area of the United States. It is the oldest line of Boston's subway, which is known locally as the 'T'. The Green Line runs underground downtown and on the surface in outlying...
D Train crashes into the rear of another train on the same line in Newton, MassachusettsNewton, MassachusettsNewton is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States bordered to the east by Boston. According to the 2010 U.S. Census, the population of Newton was 85,146, making it the eleventh largest city in the state.-Villages:...
between Woodland and Waban "T" stops. The driver of rear train dies, 12 others are injured. - June 23, 2008 – A freight train rams into a minibus at a level crossing in NurdagiNurdagiNurdağı is a district of Gaziantep Province of Turkey. Nurdağı is 45 km west of Gaziantep. The population is 16,488....
, GaziantepGaziantepGaziantep , Ottoman Turkish: Ayintab) previously and still informally called Antep; ʻayn tāb is a city in southeast Turkey and amongst the oldest continually inhabited cities in the world. The city is located 185 kilometres northeast of Adana and 127 kilometres by road north of Aleppo, Syria...
, Turkey, 11 bus passengers die. - July 16, 2008 – At least 44 people are killed and 33 injured when a truck fails to stop at level crossing and pushes two vehicles into a Matruh–Alexandrea passenger train, at Marsa MatruhMarsa MatruhMarsa Matrouh is a Mediterranean seaport and the capital of the Matrouh Governorate in Egypt. It is west of Alexandria and 222 km from Sallum, on the main highway from the Nile Delta to the Libyan border. Another highway leads south from the town, toward the Western Desert and the oases of...
, Dabaa, EgyptEgyptEgypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
. - July 19, 2008 – An Arriva Trains WalesArriva Trains WalesArriva Trains Wales is a train operating company, owned by Arriva, that operates urban and inter urban passenger services in Wales and the Welsh Marches...
Class 158British Rail Class 158British Rail Class 158 Express Sprinter is a diesel multiple-unit train, built for British Rail between 1989 and 1992 by BREL at its Derby Works. They were built to replace many locomotive-hauled passenger trains, and allowed cascading of existing Sprinter units to replace elderly 'heritage' DMUs...
train crashes into a tractor on the Shrewsbury to Chester LineShrewsbury to Chester LineThe Shrewsbury to Chester Line, also known as the Severn–Dee Line , was built in 1846 as the Shrewsbury and Chester Railway... - August 8, 2008 – Studenka Train DisasterStudénka train disasterStudénka train accident was a rail accident that happened on August 8, 2008 at approximately 09.30 local time .The train EuroCity 108 Comenius was an express train en route from Kraków, Poland to Prague, Czech Republic that struck a part of a motorway bridge that had fallen onto the railroad track...
: Express train EC 108 Comenius from KrakówKrakówKraków also Krakow, or Cracow , is the second largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in the Lesser Poland region, the city dates back to the 7th century. Kraków has traditionally been one of the leading centres of Polish academic, cultural, and artistic life...
, Poland to PraguePraguePrague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...
, Czech Republic travelling at 140 km/h crashes around 10:30 local time (GMT+1) into a section of a bridge undergoing construction that had fallen onto the track. Eight people are killed and 91 injured. - August 16, 2008 – Torrential rains lead to a landslide which causes a packed passenger train to derail in Portarlington, County Laois, Republic of Ireland. No one is injured.
- August 22, 2008 – One person dies when hit by a commuter train near PetonePetonePetone is a major suburb of the city of Lower Hutt in New Zealand. It is located at the southern end of the narrow triangular plain of the Hutt River, on the northern shore of Wellington Harbour...
, WellingtonWellingtonWellington is the capital city and third most populous urban area of New Zealand, although it is likely to have surpassed Christchurch due to the exodus following the Canterbury Earthquake. It is at the southwestern tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Rimutaka Range...
. - September 11, 2008 – A Eurotunnel ShuttleEurotunnel ShuttleEurotunnel Le Shuttle is a shuttle service between Calais/Coquelles in France and Folkestone in Britain. It conveys road vehicles by rail through the Channel Tunnel...
train carrying two vans and 25 lorries is severely damaged when a fire starts on one of the lorries. Six people are injured slightly, the part of the Channel TunnelChannel TunnelThe Channel Tunnel is a undersea rail tunnel linking Folkestone, Kent in the United Kingdom with Coquelles, Pas-de-Calais near Calais in northern France beneath the English Channel at the Strait of Dover. At its lowest point, it is deep...
where the train came to rest is closed for repairs until February 2009. - September 12, 2008 – Chatsworth train collision2008 Chatsworth train collisionThe Chatsworth train collision occurred at 16:22 PDT on Friday September 12, 2008, when a Union Pacific freight train and a Metrolink commuter train collided head-on in the Chatsworth district of Los Angeles, California, in the United States...
, CaliforniaCaliforniaCalifornia is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
, United States: A northbound Metrolink (Southern California)Metrolink (Southern California)Metrolink is a commuter rail system serving Los Angeles and the surrounding area of Southern California; it currently consists of six lines and 55 stations using of track....
double-deck commuter train runs a red lightSignal passed at dangerA Signal passed at danger , in British railway terminology, occurs when a train passes a stop signal without authority to do so. It is a term primarily used within the British Railway Industry, although it can be applied worldwide.-Categories of SPAD:...
and collides head-onHead-on collisionA head-on collision is one where the front ends of two ships, trains, planes or vehicles hit each other, as opposed to a side collision or rear-end collision.-Rail transport:...
with a Union Pacific RailroadUnion Pacific RailroadThe Union Pacific Railroad , headquartered in Omaha, Nebraska, is the largest railroad network in the United States. James R. Young is president, CEO and Chairman....
freight train pulled by three engines at about 60 mph and derails; the 220-ton derailed Metrolink engine is knocked 30 feet (9.1 m) backwards into a 119-ton passenger car, crushing it in half. 25 people are killed and about 135 are injured in the accident. This incident intensified the debate Congress was considering to mandate a safety system called Positive Train ControlPositive Train ControlPositive train control is a system of monitoring and controlling train movements to provide increased safety.-Overview:The main concept in PTC is that the train receives information about its location and where it is allowed to safely travel, also known as movement authorities...
, which passed Congress, and was signed into law, just over 30 days after this incident. - September 24, 2008 – Kuala LumpurKuala LumpurKuala Lumpur is the capital and the second largest city in Malaysia by population. The city proper, making up an area of , has a population of 1.4 million as of 2010. Greater Kuala Lumpur, also known as the Klang Valley, is an urban agglomeration of 7.2 million...
, Malaysia: two RapidKL LRT trains collide about 200 metres (656.2 ft) from the Bukit Jalil LRT stationBukit Jalil LRT stationBukit Jalil LRT station is an LRT station in Bukit Jalil, a suburb about 20 km south of Kuala Lumpur, the capital of Malaysia.It is operated under the Sri Petaling Line . This station is used by many sports fans due to its proximity to the National Sports Complex...
. A carriage of one of the trains involved in the accident hits the rear of the other train. Four passengers are injured. - September 29, 2008: Yelagiri Express derails at Tirupattur in TamilNadu, India. The engine and three coaches attached to the Yelagiri Express derailed at Tirupattur, owing to a snag in the engine, in the early hours of Monday, disrupting train services for more than three hours. As there were no passengers, a major casualty was averted.
- October 6, 2008 – Monorierdő train collision: Four people die and 26 are injured in a collision between two passenger trainTrainA train is a connected series of vehicles for rail transport that move along a track to transport cargo or passengers from one place to another place. The track usually consists of two rails, but might also be a monorail or maglev guideway.Propulsion for the train is provided by a separate...
s near BudapestBudapestBudapest is the capital of Hungary. As the largest city of Hungary, it is the country's principal political, cultural, commercial, industrial, and transportation centre. In 2011, Budapest had 1,733,685 inhabitants, down from its 1989 peak of 2,113,645 due to suburbanization. The Budapest Commuter...
. - October 6, 2008 – A Mendip RailMendip RailMendip Rail Ltd is an independent freight operating railway company in Great Britain. It is composed of the rail-operation divisions of Aggregate Industries and Hanson Aggregates ....
freight train is hit from behind by a runaway train near Great ElmGreat ElmGreat Elm is a village and civil parish between Mells and Frome in the Mendip district of Somerset, England. The parish includes the hamlet of Hapsford.-History:...
on the private line from Whatley QuarryWhatley QuarryWhatley Quarry, is a limestone quarry owned by Hanson plc, near the village of Whatley on the Mendip Hills, Somerset, England.The quarry exhibits pale to dark grey Carboniferous Limestone with small area of overlying horizontally bedded buff-coloured Jurassic oolitic limestone forming an angular...
, Somerset. There are no serious injuries. - October 11, 2008 – ThalysThalysThalys is an international high-speed train operator originally built around the high-speed line between Paris and Brussels. This track is shared with Eurostar trains that go from Paris or Brussels to London via Lille and the Channel Tunnel and with French domestic TGV trains. Thalys reaches...
trainset 4536 running between ParisGare du NordParis Nord is one of the six large terminus railway stations of the SNCF mainline network for Paris, France. It offers connections with several urban transportation lines, including Paris Métro and RER...
and Amsterdam collide with a Koploper ICMTrains in the NetherlandsThe following are current and former trains in the Netherlands.-Out of service:* Arend: was the first train in the Netherlands and pulled the first train between Amsterdam and Haarlem in 1839....
unit near GoudaGouda railway stationGouda is a railway station in Gouda, The Netherlands. The station opened on 21 May 1855 when the Nederlandsche Rhijnspoorweg-Maatschappij opened the Utrecht–Rotterdam railway...
. A steam train hauled by a BR 23DB Class 23The steam locomotives of Class 23 were German passenger train locomotives developed in the 1950s for the Deutsche Bundesbahn. They had a 2-6-2 wheel arrangement and were equipped with Class 2'2' T 31 tenders...
2-6-22-6-2Under the Whyte notation for the classification of steam locomotives, 2-6-2 represents the wheel arrangement of two leading wheels, six coupled driving wheels and two trailing wheels.Other equivalent classifications are:...
locomotive, which had its route set into the path of the collision, makes a successful emergency stop. - October 14, 2008 – A late night CSX TransportationCSX TransportationCSX Transportation operates a Class I railroad in the United States known as the CSX Railroad. It is the main subsidiary of the CSX Corporation. The company is headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida, and owns approximately 21,000 route miles...
train derails in Decatur, AlabamaDecatur, AlabamaDecatur is a city in Limestone and Morgan Counties in the U.S. state of Alabama. The city, affectionately known as "The River City", is located in Northern Alabama on the banks of Wheeler Lake, along the Tennessee River. It is the largest city and county seat of Morgan County...
, killing its conductorConductor (transportation)A conductor is a member of a railway train's crew that is responsible for operational and safety duties that do not involve the actual operation of the train. The title of conductor is most associated with railway operations in North America, but the role of conductor is common to railways...
. - November 18, 2008 – A Connex MelbourneConnex MelbourneConnex Melbourne was a wholly owned subsidiary of French company Veolia Environnement, which had a franchise from the State Government of Victoria to operate all suburban passenger rail services in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. In August 2007, Connex's contract was extended to 30 November 2009....
express train collides with a car in Dandenong South, VictoriaDandenong South, VictoriaDandenong South is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 31 km south-east from Melbourne's central business district. Its Local Government Area is the City of Greater Dandenong. At the 2006 Census, Dandenong South had a population of 4867....
, killing the car's 53-year-old female occupant after she failed to stop at an active level crossing. - November 19, 2008 – An LIRRLirrLirr or LIRR may refer to:*Long Island Rail Road, a commuter railroad in Long Island, New York, USA*Lapeer Industrial Railroad, in Lapeer, Michigan*Leeds Inner Ring Road, a motorway and A-road circling Leeds, West Yorkshire, England...
train collides with another during AM Peak times. This caused serious mainline delays. - November 20, 2008 – Kent, OhioKent, OhioKent is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the largest city in Portage County. It is located along the Cuyahoga River in Northeastern Ohio on the western edge of the county. The population was 27,906 at the 2000 United States Census and 28,904 in the 2010 Census...
: A 119-car CSX RailroadCSX TransportationCSX Transportation operates a Class I railroad in the United States known as the CSX Railroad. It is the main subsidiary of the CSX Corporation. The company is headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida, and owns approximately 21,000 route miles...
coal train derails under and damages the Crain Avenue bridge. No injuries. - November 22, 2008 – A BNSF freight train derails east of Clarendon, TexasClarendon, TexasClarendon is a city in Donley County, Texas, United States. The population was 1,974 at the 2000 census. The county seat of Donley County, Clarendon is located on United States Highway 287 in the Texas Panhandle some sixty miles east of Amarillo. It was established in 1878 by Methodist clergyman L.H...
along U.S. Highway 287. - November 27, 2008 – Two people die and several others injured after a QR Tilt Train collides with a truck on the Bruce HighwayBruce HighwayThe Bruce Highway is a major highway in Queensland, Australia. Commencing in the state capital, Brisbane, it passes through areas close to the eastern coast to Cairns in Far North Queensland. The route is a part of the Australian National Highway and also part of Highway 1...
level crossing about 20 km south of Cardwell, QueenslandCardwell, QueenslandCardwell is a tropical coastal town in northeastern Queensland. It is located at the southern extremity of the Cassowary Coast. At the 2006 census, Cardwell had a population of 1,250. The Bruce Highway National Highway 1 and the North Coast railway line are the dominant transport routes;...
. - December 23, 2008 – VentspilsVentspilsVentspils is a city in northwestern Latvia in the Courland historical region of Latvia, the sixth largest city in the country. As of 2006, Ventspils had a population of 43,806. Ventspils is situated on the Venta River and the Baltic Sea, and has an ice-free port...
, LatviaLatviaLatvia , officially the Republic of Latvia , is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by Estonia , to the south by Lithuania , to the east by the Russian Federation , to the southeast by Belarus and shares maritime borders to the west with Sweden...
: A fuel cargo train crashes into a stationary train. Ten fuel tankers catch fire, two people die. - December 31, 2008 – 33 cars of a 115-car Canadian National RailwayCanadian National RailwayThe Canadian National Railway Company is a Canadian Class I railway headquartered in Montreal, Quebec. CN's slogan is "North America's Railroad"....
freight train running from TorontoTorontoToronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
to Moncton derail at 23:30 in Villeroy, QuebecVilleroy, QuebecVilleroy is a municipality in the Centre-du-Québec region of the province of Quebec in Canada.-External links:...
. One car leaks propanePropanePropane is a three-carbon alkane with the molecular formula , normally a gas, but compressible to a transportable liquid. A by-product of natural gas processing and petroleum refining, it is commonly used as a fuel for engines, oxy-gas torches, barbecues, portable stoves, and residential central...
, causing the evacuation of about 70 residents.
2009
- January 1, 2009 – One person is killed and six others injured after a QR Sunlander train collides with a garbage truck at a level crossing with no boom gates or warning lights, near Innisfail, QueenslandInnisfail, QueenslandInnisfail is a town located in the far north of the state of Queensland, Australia. It is the major township of the Cassowary Coast and is well renowned for its sugar and banana industries, as well as for being one of Australia's wettest towns...
. - January 7, 2009 – A half-mile radius area is evacuated after a derailment of a CSX TransportationCSX TransportationCSX Transportation operates a Class I railroad in the United States known as the CSX Railroad. It is the main subsidiary of the CSX Corporation. The company is headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida, and owns approximately 21,000 route miles...
train in Queensgate, Cincinnati, OhioQueensgate, Cincinnati, OhioQueensgate is a neighborhood in Cincinnati, Ohio. It sits in the same valley as downtown Cincinnati and has been dominated by industrial and commercial warehouses for most of its history. Cincinnati's nickname of "Porkopolis" started here with hog slaughtering in the early 19th century. Queensgate...
. two of the four derailed cars are carrying propanePropanePropane is a three-carbon alkane with the molecular formula , normally a gas, but compressible to a transportable liquid. A by-product of natural gas processing and petroleum refining, it is commonly used as a fuel for engines, oxy-gas torches, barbecues, portable stoves, and residential central...
, nothing leaked. - February 7, 2009 – Three people are killed and more than 90 injured in a collision between two passenger trains in CamagüeyCamagüeyCamagüey is a city and municipality in central Cuba and is the nation's third largest city. It is the capital of the Camagüey Province.After almost continuous attacks from pirates the original city was moved inland in 1528.The new city was built with a confusing lay-out of winding alleys that made...
, 570 kilometres (354.2 mi) east of HavanaHavanaHavana is the capital city, province, major port, and leading commercial centre of Cuba. The city proper has a population of 2.1 million inhabitants, and it spans a total of — making it the largest city in the Caribbean region, and the most populous...
. - February 13, 2009 – Twelve carriages of the Howrah-Madras Express derail2009 Orissa train derailmentThe Jajapur derailment was a passenger train derailment that occurred at 19:45 local time in the dark in the eastern state of Orissa, India, on 13 February 2009. Nine people were killed and 150 people were injured in the incident...
soon after the train departs Jajpur Road station near the city of BhubaneswarBhubaneswarBhubaneswar is the capital of the Indian state of Orissa, officially Odisha. The city has a long history of over 2000 years starting with Chedi dynasty who had Sisupalgarh near present-day Bhubaneswar as their capital...
in the state of OrissaOrissaOrissa , officially Odisha since Nov 2011, is a state of India, located on the east coast of India, by the Bay of Bengal. It is the modern name of the ancient nation of Kalinga, which was invaded by the Maurya Emperor Ashoka in 261 BC. The modern state of Orissa was established on 1 April...
, killing 9 people and injuring 250. - February 21, 2009 – Eleven people die in a collision between a bus and a train on a level crossing near Brezno.
- March 29, 2009 – Equipment breakdown and culpability causes a rear end collision in GulweGulwe- Transport :Gulwe is a station on the Central Railway of Tanzanian Railways.It is the railhead for Mpwapwa....
–IganduIgandu- Transport :Igandu has a station on the Central Railway of Tanzanian Railways. It is near the site of the disastrous Igandu train disaster....
section (Mpwapwa districtMpwapwa districtMpwapwa is one of the 5 districts of the Dodoma Region of Tanzania. It is bordered to the west by the Dodoma Urban district, and to the north by the Kongwa District....
), killing dozens of passengers and injuring many others. - May 1, 2009 a passenger train travelling from Dublin–WaterfordWaterfordWaterford is a city in the South-East Region of Ireland. It is the oldest city in the country and fifth largest by population. Waterford City Council is the local government authority for the city and its immediate hinterland...
in the Republic of IrelandRepublic of IrelandIreland , described as the Republic of Ireland , is a sovereign state in Europe occupying approximately five-sixths of the island of the same name. Its capital is Dublin. Ireland, which had a population of 4.58 million in 2011, is a constitutional republic governed as a parliamentary democracy,...
struck a cow in south Co. Kilkenny at 8:25p.m. The engine and one carriage partly derailed but was put back on the track by the sleepers. No one died but the engine sustained damage and required two other engines to remove it from the train. The rail line also sustained some damage. - May 9, 2009 – One railroad employee was hurt when a train heading from Jacksonville to Miami derailed near Palm Coast about 6:45 p.m. Saturday. 37 cars and two locomotives on the Florida East Coast Railroad train jumped the tracks, including some rail cars that contained hydrochloric acid, a hazardous substance. Hazardous materials teams from the St. Johns County Fire-Rescue were called to the scene to try and prevent the leak and spread of the substance. On Sunday, a Jacksonville haz-mat team was sent to assist. Both engines of the train and 37 cars—including automobiles, corn syrup tanks and boxcars—left the tracks.
- June 5, 2009 – A 111-car Canadian Pacific RailwayCanadian Pacific RailwayThe Canadian Pacific Railway , formerly also known as CP Rail between 1968 and 1996, is a historic Canadian Class I railway founded in 1881 and now operated by Canadian Pacific Railway Limited, which began operations as legal owner in a corporate restructuring in 2001...
train derails in Oshawa, ON around 2:15 p.m. CDT. Two locomotives and 27 cars of the train derail, some of the cars come to rest in nearby backyards and a schoolyard during recess. - June 7, 2009 – A girl trying to take a picture of a nearby bridge in BacăuBacauBacău is the main city in Bacău County, Romania. It covers a land surface of 43 km², and, as of January 1, 2009, has an estimated population of 177,087. The city is situated in the historical region of Moldavia, at the foothills of the Carpathian Mountains, and on the Bistriţa River...
is struck and killed by a regional express train. - June 19, 2009 – A major downpour of rain in Rockford, IllinoisRockford, IllinoisRockford is a mid-sized city located on both banks of the Rock River in far northern Illinois. Often referred to as "The Forest City", Rockford is the county seat of Winnebago County, Illinois, USA. As reported in the 2010 U.S. census, the city was home to 152,871 people, the third most populated...
causes 14 of the 114 ethanolEthanolEthanol, also called ethyl alcohol, pure alcohol, grain alcohol, or drinking alcohol, is a volatile, flammable, colorless liquid. It is a psychoactive drug and one of the oldest recreational drugs. Best known as the type of alcohol found in alcoholic beverages, it is also used in thermometers, as a...
tankers of a Canadian National freight train to leave the track and explode into flames. One person at a rail crossing dies, several others are burned. - June 22, 2009 – Two rush hour Washington MetroWashington MetroThe Washington Metro, commonly called Metro, and unofficially Metrorail, is the rapid transit system in Washington, D.C., United States, and its surrounding suburbs. It is administered by the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority , which also operates Metrobus service under the Metro name...
trains collide in Northeast Washington, D.C. killing nine people, the deadliest incident in the subway system's 33-year history. - June 29, 2009 – A freight train derails2009 Viareggio train derailmentThe Viareggio derailment was the derailment of a freight train and subsequent fire which occurred on 29 June 2009 in the railway station of Viareggio , Tuscany . Twenty-six people were injured, and , 32 people were confirmed as having died....
at ViareggioViareggioViareggio is a city and comune located in northern Tuscany, Italy, on the coast of the Tyrrhenian Sea. With a population of over 64,000 it is the main centre of the northern Tuscan Riviera known as Versilia, and the second largest city within the Province of Lucca.It is known as a seaside resort...
. Two wagons carrying Liquefied petroleum gas explode. Thirty-two people die, five of them when a house collapses. - June 29, 2009 – Two passenger trains collide2009 Hunan train collisionThe Chenzhou train collision occurred on June 29, 2009, at Chenzhou railway station in Hunan province, China, when two passenger trains collided, leaving at least three people dead and 63 injured. The crash occurred at 02:34 local time, between express trains numbered K9017 and K9063. A brake...
at 2:34 a.m. local time at ChenzhouChenzhouChenzhou is a city located in the southern area of Hunan province, People's Republic of China. Its administrative area covers , 9.2% of the provincial area, and its total population reached 4,559,600 as of 2001, 26% of them living in urban areas, 74% of them live in rural areas.-History:Chenzhou...
railway station, HunanHunan' is a province of South-Central China, located to the south of the middle reaches of the Yangtze River and south of Lake Dongting...
Province, killing 3 people and leaving 63 injured. The accident is allegedly caused by a brake failure, which is disputed. - July 9, 2009 – An AmtrakAmtrakThe National Railroad Passenger Corporation, doing business as Amtrak , is a government-owned corporation that was organized on May 1, 1971, to provide intercity passenger train service in the United States. "Amtrak" is a portmanteau of the words "America" and "track". It is headquartered at Union...
passenger train hits the side of a vehicle in Canton Township, MichiganCanton Township, MichiganThe Charter Township of Canton, usually referred to as Canton, is an affluent charter township of Wayne County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The commuter town is located west of Detroit and east of Ann Arbor. As of the 2010 census, the township had a population of 90,173, making it Michigan's...
near Detroit. Five people in the vehicle die. - July 14, 2009 – A Dakota, Minnesota, and Eastern freight train collides with parked rail cars in a local yard in Bettendorf, IowaBettendorf, IowaBettendorf is a city in Scott County, Iowa, United States. Bettendorf is the fifteenth largest city in the U.S. state of Iowa and the fourth largest city in the "Quad Cities". As of the 2010 United States Census the population grew to 33,217. Bettendorf is one of the Quad Cities, along with...
, a part of the Quad CitiesQuad CitiesThe Quad Cities is a group of five cities straddling the Mississippi River on the Iowa–Illinois boundary. These cities, Davenport and Bettendorf and Rock Island, Moline, and East Moline , are the center of the Quad Cities Metropolitan Area, which, as of 2010, had an estimated population of...
. Both the engineer and conductor, who are from Savanna, IllinoisSavanna, IllinoisSavanna is a city in Carroll County, Illinois, United States. The population was 3,062 at the 2010 census, down from 3,542 at the 2000 census. Savanna is located along the Mississippi River at the mouth of the Plum River. Going from north to south, the second automobile bridge between Iowa and...
, die. The front locomotive is severely damaged and will likely be scrapped on site. The DM&E is a wholly owned subsidiary of the Canadian Pacific RailwayCanadian Pacific RailwayThe Canadian Pacific Railway , formerly also known as CP Rail between 1968 and 1996, is a historic Canadian Class I railway founded in 1881 and now operated by Canadian Pacific Railway Limited, which began operations as legal owner in a corporate restructuring in 2001...
. - July 24, 2009 – Rudine2009 Rudine train derailmentThe Rudine derailment was a train derailment that happened on July 24, 2009 at 10:08 GMT near the village of Rudine in southern Croatia, on the Zagreb-Split railway line. The derailment site is located on the slopes of Kozjak at...
, CroatiaCroatiaCroatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ...
: HŽ ICN tilting trainRegioSwingerThe RegioSwinger is a tilting Diesel Multiple Unit passenger train used for fast regional traffic on unelectrified lines.- Development and Service :...
number 521 bound from ZagrebZagrebZagreb is the capital and the largest city of the Republic of Croatia. It is in the northwest of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slopes of the Medvednica mountain. Zagreb lies at an elevation of approximately above sea level. According to the last official census, Zagreb's city...
to SplitSplit (city)Split is a Mediterranean city on the eastern shores of the Adriatic Sea, centered around the ancient Roman Palace of the Emperor Diocletian and its wide port bay. With a population of 178,192 citizens, and a metropolitan area numbering up to 467,899, Split is by far the largest Dalmatian city and...
derails at 10:08 GMT between Labin Dalmatinski and Kaštel Stari near the village of Rudine. 6 passengers die, 55 are injured, 13 of them seriously. The crash is caused by retardant that was sprayed on the railroad approximately 10 minutes before the accident, leaving the track surface slippery, which made braking impossible. 30 minutes after the crash, during the rescue operation, a rescue train experiences the same problem and derails on the very same spot. There are no further injuries or deaths, although the second train passes close to dozens of rescue workers and collides with the derailed wreckage. The ICN trainset has been written off due to the extreme damage. - July 29, 2009 – A train runs off the line due to landslideLandslideA landslide or landslip is a geological phenomenon which includes a wide range of ground movement, such as rockfalls, deep failure of slopes and shallow debris flows, which can occur in offshore, coastal and onshore environments...
at 4:22 a.m. local time in LiuchengLiucheng CountyLiucheng County is a county under the jurisdiction of Liuzhou, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region of China. It covers a land area of 2,124 sq...
, GuangxiGuangxiGuangxi, formerly romanized Kwangsi, is a province of southern China along its border with Vietnam. In 1958, it became the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region of the People's Republic of China, a region with special privileges created specifically for the Zhuang people.Guangxi's location, in...
, killing 4 people and leaving 71 injured. - August 14, 2009 – A bus ignores rail crossing signals in Scânteia2009 Romanian bus-train collisionThe 2009 Romanian bus–train collision occurred on August 14, 2009 at 14:10 local time when at least 14 people died after a collision between a bus and a train in Scânteia, Iaşi County, Romania on County Road 248C. The death toll was initially reported as 10...
(Iaşi county) and is struck by a semi-fast train, 14 die and 2 injured. - August 28, 2009 – A freight train carrying fuel derails south of YaoundeYaoundé-Transportation:Yaoundé Nsimalen International Airport is a major civilian hub, while nearby Yaoundé Airport is used by the military. Railway lines run west to the port city of Douala and north to N'Gaoundéré. Many bus companies operate from the city; particularly in the Nsam and Mvan neighborhoods...
, CameroonCameroonCameroon, officially the Republic of Cameroon , is a country in west Central Africa. It is bordered by Nigeria to the west; Chad to the northeast; the Central African Republic to the east; and Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, and the Republic of the Congo to the south. Cameroon's coastline lies on the...
and catches fire. Eleven wagons carrying diesel fuel and petrol are destroyed. One person dies. - August 30, 2009 – A passenger train derails near Yaounde, CameroonCameroonCameroon, officially the Republic of Cameroon , is a country in west Central Africa. It is bordered by Nigeria to the west; Chad to the northeast; the Central African Republic to the east; and Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, and the Republic of the Congo to the south. Cameroon's coastline lies on the...
killing five and injuring 275. - September 2, 2009 – A Riga – Daugavpils train near Livani is struck by a "Volvo" excavator. 1 person dies, 3 are injured. The driver of the excavator was drunk and did not see the train.
- September 12, 2009 – Two steam trainsSteam locomotiveA steam locomotive is a railway locomotive that produces its power through a steam engine. These locomotives are fueled by burning some combustible material, usually coal, wood or oil, to produce steam in a boiler, which drives the steam engine...
collide2009 Lößnitzgrundbahn head-on collisionThe Freidewald train collision was a railway accident on 12 September 2009 in Saxony, Germany. It involved two steam hauled passenger trains of the narrow gauge heritage Radebeul–Radeburg railway . One hundred and twenty-one people were injured, four of them seriously...
head-on on the Lößnitzgrundbahn. - 16 September 2009, at 3pm a red line Luas tram and a double-decker number 16 Dublin Bus collided at the intersection of Abbey Street and O'Connell Street in Dublin city centre. The front section of the tram was derailed in the incident and the driver's cabin was crushed flat against the left hand side of the bus. At least 21 people were injured and three were seriously hurt, including the driver of the tram who had to be cut out from the wreckage.
- September 21, 2009 – A passenger train derails after leaving CraiovaCraiovaCraiova , Romania's 6th largest city and capital of Dolj County, is situated near the east bank of the river Jiu in central Oltenia. It is a longstanding political center, and is located at approximately equal distances from the Southern Carpathians and the River Danube . Craiova is the chief...
station at a speed of about 100 km/h, injuring 16. Investigators suspect sabotage. - September 21, 2009 – A truck loaded with bricks IS struck by a locomotive near Gura Ocniţei, Dâmboviţa CountyDâmbovita CountyDâmbovița ; also spelt Dîmbovița is a county of Romania, in Muntenia, with the capital city at Târgoviște.-Demographics:In 2002, it had a population of 541,763 and the population density was 134/km²...
. The truck driver did not see the train coming. No injuries. - September 21, 2009 – A freight train loaded with diesel derails near Boju, Cluj CountyCluj CountyCluj ; is a county of Romania, in Transylvania, with the capital city at Cluj-Napoca.-Demographics:In 2007, it had a population of 692,316 and a population density of 104/km².*Romanians – 80%*Hungarians – 17.5%*Roma – 2.5%-Geography:...
. Investigators suspect that the two locomotives of the train (one pulling, one pushing) are not synchronized in speed. Fuel leaks from the derailed cars. No injuries. - September 24, 2009 – Two freight trains collide head-onHead-on collisionA head-on collision is one where the front ends of two ships, trains, planes or vehicles hit each other, as opposed to a side collision or rear-end collision.-Rail transport:...
below a viaduct on the A15 motorway near BarendrechtBarendrechtBarendrecht is a town in the western Netherlands, in the province of South Holland. The municipality had a population of 43,104 in 2007, and covers an area of 21.72 km² of which 1.45 km² is water....
, killing the driver of one train. Derailed sections land on a parallel track, where a passenger train is approaching. A few passengers of the passenger train are lightly injured. - September 30, 2009 – A 13 year old Norwegian boy is electrocuted by the overhead wire after climbing on a parked locomotive in UddevallaUddevallaUddevalla is a city and the seat of Uddevalla Municipality, Västra Götaland County, Sweden with 30,513 inhabitants in 2005.It is located at the bay Byfjorden, of the south-eastern part of the sea known as Skagerrak...
to take a photograph. - October 5, 2009 – A passenger train derails in Hua HinHua HinHua Hin is a famous beach resort town in Thailand, in the northern part of the Malay Peninsula, some 200 km south of Bangkok. It has a population of 84,883 in an area of 911 km², and is one of eight districts of the Prachuap Khiri Khan province.Hua Hin is closely associated with the...
at 04:50 local time (21:50 on October 4 UTCCoordinated Universal TimeCoordinated Universal Time is the primary time standard by which the world regulates clocks and time. It is one of several closely related successors to Greenwich Mean Time. Computer servers, online services and other entities that rely on having a universally accepted time use UTC for that purpose...
). At least seven people die and dozens are injured. Occurs during heavy rain. - October 20, 2009 - Mathura train accident2009 Mathura train accidentThe Mathura train collision was a passenger train collision that occurred at 05:00 local time in near dark conditions near Mathura, in the state of Uttar Pradesh, India, on Wednesday, 20 October 2009. At least ten people were initially feared dead in the incident...
, a passenger train collision near Mathura - October 21, 2009 – 21 passengers die and around 17 are injured when a Goa express runs into the last coach of a stationary Mewar Express. Later, it is determined that the signalling system was tempered with.
- October 23, 2009 – Thane train accident: A huge concrete slab comes crashing down just before a train is about to run below it in northeast Mumbai on Friday morning, killing the driver and a commuter. Twelve other people are also injured in the accident.
- October 24, 2009 – A passenger train was stopped after striking water buffalo in the al Ayyat area of Giza. Another passenger train, travelling in the same direction, later runs int o the back of the stationary train, resulting in the deaths of at least 18 people.
- November 4, 2009 – At least 18 people die after a passenger train, Allama Iqbal Express, collides head on with a goods train in the suburbs of the city of KarachiKarachiKarachi is the largest city, main seaport and the main financial centre of Pakistan, as well as the capital of the province of Sindh. The city has an estimated population of 13 to 15 million, while the total metropolitan area has a population of over 18 million...
. The driver of the Allama Iqbal Express passed a stop signal at Juma Goth Station and rammed into another train from Karachi on the same track. - November 24, 2009 – Houston, TexasHouston, TexasHouston is the fourth-largest city in the United States, and the largest city in the state of Texas. According to the 2010 U.S. Census, the city had a population of 2.1 million people within an area of . Houston is the seat of Harris County and the economic center of , which is the ...
: 116 cars of a Union Pacific RailroadUnion Pacific RailroadThe Union Pacific Railroad , headquartered in Omaha, Nebraska, is the largest railroad network in the United States. James R. Young is president, CEO and Chairman....
train derail in southwest Houston, forcing the closure of several lanes of Alternate U.S. Highway 90U.S. Route 90 Alternate (Texas)U.S. Highway 90 Alternate is an alternate route to U.S. Highway 90 in the U.S. state of Texas, running from west of Seguin east via Seguin, Gonzales, Hallettsville, Eagle Lake, Rosenberg and Sugar Land to northeastern Houston...
for several days. - November 27, 2009 – A 7 kilograms (15.4 lb) explosive device derails the last three cars of the Neva Express at BologoyeBologoyeBologoye is a town and the administrative center of Bologovsky District of Tver Oblast, Russia, as well as a major railway hub. It is located approximately half-way between Moscow and St. Petersburg on the railway route connecting the two cities. Population: The first mention of Bologoye in...
on a journey from Moscow to St Petersburg while traveling at 200 kilometres per hour, with at least 27 human deaths reported. A second bomb exploded during salvage operations. - December 20, 2009 – A Paris RERRERThe RER is a rapid transit system in France serving Paris and its suburbs. The RER is an integration of a modern city-centre underground rail and a pre-existing set of commuter rail lines. It has several connections with the Paris Métro within the city of Paris. Within the city, the RER...
train hits a concrete block and derails at Choisy-le-Roi, in the southern region of Paris, causing 17 injuries. - December 21, 2009 – ZagrebZagrebZagreb is the capital and the largest city of the Republic of Croatia. It is in the northwest of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slopes of the Medvednica mountain. Zagreb lies at an elevation of approximately above sea level. According to the last official census, Zagreb's city...
, CroatiaCroatiaCroatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ...
- An early morning HŽ commuter train number 5100 bound from Sisak CapragSisakSisak is a city in central Croatia. The city's population in 2011 was 33,049, with a total of 49,699 in the administrative region and it is also the administrative centre of the Sisak-Moslavina county...
to ZagrebZagrebZagreb is the capital and the largest city of the Republic of Croatia. It is in the northwest of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slopes of the Medvednica mountain. Zagreb lies at an elevation of approximately above sea level. According to the last official census, Zagreb's city...
fails to stop and crashes into the platform bumperBuffer stopA buffer stop or bumper is a device to prevent railway vehicles from going past the end of a physical section of track.The design of the buffer stop is dependent in part upon the kind of couplings that the railway uses, since the coupling gear is the first part of the vehicle that the buffer stop...
at Zagreb Glavni KolodvorZagreb Main StationZagreb Main Station is the central railway station in Zagreb and the largest railway station in Croatia. It is located in the center of Zagreb, on King Tomislav Square....
at 15–20 km/h. The cause of the crash, which occurred at the very end of its journey, is lack of antifreeze fluid in the locomotive's braking system which froze due to the low outside temperature (-22 deg. C). The crash occurs at 5:26 local time (4:26 GMT). 60 people from the train (including the train's engineer) are injured, 7 of them seriously. There are no injuries among people on the platform. Witnesses report that the engineer leaned out of the locomotive window to warn people on the platform that his brakes have failed and the train will crash at the end of the platform.
See also
- Classification of railway accidentsClassification of railway accidentsClassification of railway accidents, both in terms of cause and effect, is a valuable aid in studying rail accidents to help to prevent similar ones occurring in future...
- List of train accidents by death toll
- List of road accidents - includes level crossingLevel crossingA level crossing occurs where a railway line is intersected by a road or path onone level, without recourse to a bridge or tunnel. It is a type of at-grade intersection. The term also applies when a light rail line with separate right-of-way or reserved track crosses a road in the same fashion...
accidents. - List of road accidents 2000–2009
- List of level crossing accidents
- List of British rail accidents
- List of Indian rail accidents
- List of Russian rail accidents
- List of rail accidents by country
- Years in rail transportYears in rail transport- Before 1700 :- 1700 :- 1800 :- 1900 :- 2000 :...
- 2006 in rail transport2006 in rail transport- January events : January 5 – Railway workers across India begin voting on whether or not to hold a strike against Indian Railways in February. The union's demands center around pay scales, pensions, and private investment into the railway...
- Tram accidentTram accidentA tram accident is generally an accident in which a tram is involved . When general traffic safety is evaluated, as in traffic accident statistics, any accident involving a tram or a tram system can be considered to be a tram accident...
- Federal Employers Liability ActFederal Employers Liability ActThe Federal Employers Liability Act , 45 U.S.C. § 51 et seq. , is a United States federal law that protects and compensates railroaders injured on the job.-Background:...
External links
- NTSB Reports – The United States National Transportation Safety BoardNational Transportation Safety BoardThe National Transportation Safety Board is an independent U.S. government investigative agency responsible for civil transportation accident investigation. In this role, the NTSB investigates and reports on aviation accidents and incidents, certain types of highway crashes, ship and marine...
official reports of transportation accidents. - RSSB Publications – UK Rail Safety and Standards Board
- Casper Star-Tribune (June 22, 2005), BP Amoco Timeline. Retrieved June 22, 2005.
- CBS, (June 21, 2005), Deadly Train-Truck Crash In Israel. Retrieved August 13, 2005.
- BBC: Europe's history of rail disasters
- BBC: World's worst rail disasters
- Chicago South Shore and South Bend Railroad accidents. Retrieved January 27, 2005.
- (May 2002), CSX recognizes human error, Trains Magazine, p. 22.
- Banerji, Ajai, "Worldwide Railway Accidents, 2000-09", 2011, ISBN 9781257913916, ISBN 9788192187617
- Edinburgh Evening News (August 17, 2005) Railway worker killed in Channel Tunnel link blaze. Retrieved August 17, 2005.
- Holbrook, Stewart Hall, The Story of American Railroads, Bonanza Books, New York, 1947, ISBN 0-517-00100-4.
- IOL Asia (May 19, 2005), Hundreds injured in train accident. Retrieved May 20, 2005.
- Molloy, Tim; Associated Press (January 26, 2005) Suicide try triggers California commuter rail tragedy, police say. Retrieved January 26, 2005.
- National Transportation Safety Board, 2003, http://www.ntsb.gov/doclib/reports/2003/RAR0302.pdf Derailment of Amtrak Auto Train PO52-18 on the CSXT Railroad near Crescent City, Florida, April 18, 2002. Railroad Accident Report NTSB/RAR 03-02. Washington, D.C..
- The Railway Magazine, Network Rail found guilty over Hatfield crash, but managers are acquitted, November 2005, King's Reach Tower, Stamford Street, London, SE1 9LS, pages 13–15.
- Reuters UK (August 16, 2005), One feared dead in rail tunnel fire in south. Retrieved August 17, 2005.
- RIA Novosti (June 13, 2005), Railroad traffic restored. Retrieved June 13, 2005. Details bomb on Russian railroad, June 12.
- RIA Novosti (June 16, 2005), URGENT: Fuel oil in Volga after railroad accident near Rzhev, deputy prosecutor. Retrieved June 16, 2005.
- (May 2005), "Scanner - Rail at fault?", Trains Magazine, p. 21.
- Train wrecks in India
- Trains NewsWire (August 1, 2005), Chinese passenger train derailment kills 5. Retrieved August 3, 2005.
- Trains News Wire (May 4, 2005), Illinois derailment closes UP Overland Route main line. Retrieved May 5, 2005.
- USA Today, February 17, 2006 Train derailment kills 2, page 5A.
- Washington Post, March 16, 2006 Off the Track in Manassas, page B-3.
- Withers, Bob, The President Travels by Train - Politics and Pullmans, TLC Publishing Inc., Lynchburg, Virginia, 1996, ISBN 1-883089-17-4.
- Fox Valley tied to tragic train wrecks, The Herald News Online, March 20, 1999 (ChicagoSuburbanNews.com). Retrieved May 31, 2005.
- United States National Transportation Safety Board Publications