TRAIN HAS CLOSE CALL

Chronicle (Levin), 14 August 1947, Page 5

TRAIN HAS CLOSE CALL

-Press AssoektUon

By Telegraph-

WELLINGTON, August 13; Througii a eause as yet unexplained, the tender of the locomotive drawing the Auckiaiid to Wellington express was derailed about i a mi-le south.of Halcombe and 7 miles north of Feilding at at 3.50 a.m. to.day. The aceident oecurred while the train was running down a slight incline and aiong a bank 12 feet below which was a marsh. Neither the engine nor .any of the ten cars and guar.d's yan left the track. The driver br-ought the train, wliieh was travel-ling from 30 to .35 miles an hour, to a smooth standstil. Few of the full load of passengers were • aware of anything amiss. A delay of 3 hours 20 minutes oceurr-ed before the train was on its way again. The express was on time when it passed through Halcombe station. It was making average .speed when. the leadiilg bogey of ithe; tender jumped .the rails as the engine was running down a gentle i incline and about to take a bridge ; two chains away on an upgrade. j Ihe passengers were either asleepj •r dozing and none except one in j the front carriage who said he felt a suddeb jerk, noticed thc acci--ien.t. A goods train following about two hours behind the express was halted when it arrived at Halcombe. Its engine was de--tached and sent down the Une to pull the express back to Halcombe station while the arduous task of getting the heavy express -engine bae.k 011 the rails was unde-rtaken ■n the darkness. The goods engine was then transferred to the front jf the express and occupied its time st.eam-heating the eold carriages while awaiting the clearanee nf the line which was very little damaged. This was eompleted soon after 7 a.m. and the express angine, a K class oil burne-r, was run baek to Marton for a prelimirv examination. Latcr it hauled ;he stranded goods train from Halcombe to Palmerston North.