Tretten train disaster
Encyclopedia
The Tretten train disaster occurred on 22 February 1975 when a northbound train (no. 351) from Oslo
and a southbound express train (no. 404) from Trondheim
collided head-on 1 kilometre (0.621372736649807 mi) north of Tretten
station. With 27 killed, including seven children under 16, and 25 injured, it was the worst train crash in Norwegian
peacetime history. One accident victim was from the United States
while the rest were Norwegians, including the politician Tønnes Andenæs
. Altogether there were around 800 passengers on the two 12-car trains. Most of those killed were in one car of the northbound train. The operators of both trains survived; one jumped from the cab before the collision. The accident happened because the northbound train, running late, did not wait at Tretten station to let the other pass. One train driver told a newspaper that it was difficult to see the signals because the sun was low in the sky. A station master had cut power to the trains and attempted to warn them, but too late.
In the aftermath of the disaster new safety precautions were discussed and introduced.
Oslo
Oslo is a municipality, as well as the capital and most populous city in Norway. As a municipality , it was established on 1 January 1838. Founded around 1048 by King Harald III of Norway, the city was largely destroyed by fire in 1624. The city was moved under the reign of Denmark–Norway's King...
and a southbound express train (no. 404) from Trondheim
Trondheim
Trondheim , historically, Nidaros and Trondhjem, is a city and municipality in Sør-Trøndelag county, Norway. With a population of 173,486, it is the third most populous municipality and city in the country, although the fourth largest metropolitan area. It is the administrative centre of...
collided head-on 1 kilometre (0.621372736649807 mi) north of Tretten
Tretten
Tretten is a parish and a small village in the northern part of the Øyer municipality, Norway.Its population is 880. Tretten is located on the Losna lake, which is part of the Gudbrandsdalslågen river. The village had its own sports team Tretten IL until 1990, when a merger created Øyer-Tretten...
station. With 27 killed, including seven children under 16, and 25 injured, it was the worst train crash in Norwegian
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
peacetime history. One accident victim was from the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
while the rest were Norwegians, including the politician Tønnes Andenæs
Tønnes Andenæs
Tønnes Madsson Andenæs was a Norwegian jurist, book publisher and politician for the Labour Party.He was born in Innvik as a son of vicar Mads Olsen Andenæs and his wife Signe Theoline Mydland . The family moved to Bærum when Tønnes Andenæs was two years old. He was a brother of Johs. Andenæs,...
. Altogether there were around 800 passengers on the two 12-car trains. Most of those killed were in one car of the northbound train. The operators of both trains survived; one jumped from the cab before the collision. The accident happened because the northbound train, running late, did not wait at Tretten station to let the other pass. One train driver told a newspaper that it was difficult to see the signals because the sun was low in the sky. A station master had cut power to the trains and attempted to warn them, but too late.
In the aftermath of the disaster new safety precautions were discussed and introduced.