RAILWAY SMASH

Hokitika Guardian, 19 July 1929, Page 6

RAILWAY SMASH

ALL BLACKS ESCAPE. BRISBANE EXPRESS. THREE CARS CAPSIZE. (Australian Press Association) SYDNEY, July 18. The Brisbane Limited Express jumped the rails near Black Mountain station, in the New . England Range, early this morning. Three carriages overturned, and it is reported that the whole train left the -line. Passengers were flung from their 'berths, but, strangely enough none was injured. It is believed that a broken rail was the cause of the accident. Fortunately the train was travelling slowly, due to a fog, or otherwise the mishap might have been attended with tragic results'. The two 'Sydney footballers, Westfield, and Lamport, who are picked to represent Australia against , New Zealandln, Jest; match, were- among thd passengers;- The All Blacks ; iiad T left Artnidale by an ear-. lier train,•intending-to transfer to the Brisbane express at Wallangara. Thither pji,, improvised, ~tKviii, :i }vas to Proceed.// It was. n,ot,‘ to arrive before "three o’clock this afternoon.--, •> /■ ?,(_,« - ' Both the main and the loop lines, were- blocked, by : they overturned carriages. The night was one of the coldest' ever known in Sydney, and frosts were general in all of the elevated country. The scene of the accident is one of the highest points on the line, being 4,330 feet above sea level. The train rushed through the Black Mountain station, though apparently its speed had been reduced on account of a thick fog shrouding the mountainsides, and - whenythe train had got just past the home signal! the coaches lurched heavily. There was a , grinding,. of brakes) j. and ; a /shrill screachittg of steel, rasping and ripping on steel and the passengers .were awakened by a sickening plunge. There were two locomotives hauling the train up the grade, which both remained on the line, but the wheels of one -car-'in' the' hodV -of the I ''train left tho rails',' and plbugh'ed :tlie; per-, manent •' way. ' A second boacli was dragged with it, and both swung over at a dangerous angle. Then, a third carriage followed, and all three were sent over on their sides with a,_ deafening, crash, passengers being flung from their sleeping 'berths against the roofs of the cabins. The three other coaches making up 'the'fraTn also left {the line; and tore up the roadway,, but-they did not capsize. : ; ;;.V 'iv ( "The passengers in these were jolted, but they were not thrown from! . their ■ berths;'• " >l ' " - • ’’ In the freezing dawn, the passengers lit fires and huddlgd round, .them' • in an effort to keep warm. •The sound of the 'fclhish' attracted tho nearby settlers,; who provided hot tea, and did what they could for the passengers’ comfort. MARVELLOUS ESCAPE. •FOR THE PASSENGERS. ; A PANIC CREATED. . • . i i ! SYDNEY, July 18. The wrecked Limited’ Express consisted . of - two medium-* 'loconTotites,j and six cars carrying sleeping, first; and second passengers, and a brake van.,- The train-Weighed approximately four hundred i tons. The brake van was also derailed ns! well as all the cars. The permanent way was torn up for a distance oftwo hundred yards.. A relief train was rushed to the, scene from Newcastle, and breakdown gangs were sent from AVerris' Greek. It is expected, however, that the line will he blocked for a few days. In the meantime the B riff ban e-Sydney expresses will meet on either side of the gap and will transfer their passengers. ; . Fortunately, last night’s passenger list was not a long one, hut all those in the capsized cars will remember this,, morning for ’the;'rest of - ‘ their lives. As the coaches toppled over, panic seized some of the'occupants. Their screams of terror resounded along the lonely mountain side. 'Hie windows were shattered, and steel framework was twisted, tho timber splintered and men and women were flung against 'the swaying walls of tho toppling carriages. Then, as tho ears’ plunging progress ended, tho passengers set to work to climb out of tho windows, which were now above their heads. Tho task of reaching safety in this way was not an easy one. with heavy shutters and broken glass to impede their escape. All aboard the train naturally wore' very severely shaken, hut no

one was injured. As tho passengers struggled from the wreck, many were clad only in their pyjamas, which formed a poor protection against the biting, fiost-y atmosphere. Thick billows of fog enveloped them, which added to the confusion for some time. Meanwhile railwaymen from the little Black Mountain station, alarmed by the crash, hurried to the spot expected to find a scene of carnage,but they wero astounded to discover that none had been caught in the broken and splintering steel and wood of which the carriages were built and which imust 'certainly have spelt death to any thus trapped.

AMAZING LUCK. The passengers’ escape in this ease is probably tho most amazing in the annals of the New South Wales Railways. A similar derailment of the Brisbane express at Aberdeen Bridge in 1926, was attended iby loss of life and a long list of injured. The line on this section is a single track one, laid with seventy pound rails, some of which have been down for many years. The derailed coaches were all of modern construction. Two medium engines were used to haul the train up the steep grades hereabouts, the speed averaging thirty miles an hour. .., ALL BLACKS FARE BEST. THEIR QAR REMAINS’ ON RAILS. .o' SYDNEY, July 18. A. message from Guyra, five miles from the scene of : the accident, states,;, definitely, that- the , All Blacks 'were .on hoard, the ill-fated train. The ,AH Blacks occupied the last carriage,-, which remained on the line, and they, .therefore were less shaken than ,were . the other passengers. When the-more curious of -the. All Blacks poked their heads out of the windows, they inquired what was the matter. Somebody replied: “A broken rail” Grenside ejaculated: “Well tell! them weld it again!” At least two of the players slept right through the commotion. One of the New Zealanders, Kivell, was a passenger on the train that had an- accident in New Zealand just prior to embarking- for Sydney* l It is understood that Mrs McLeod, the All Black manager’s wife, was also a passenger on tho express.

ALL BLACKS “HOODOO.” •• • ’ SYDNEY. July 18. The two carriages in which the All Blacks were added to ihe Brisbane train at frwidalc.' The' manager, Mr McLeod, reports aU Well with the team, who treated the experience lightly, although they cannot imagine how some of the passengers were not killed. The team expects to reach Brisbane to-night at rtn id night, which is six - hours. late. !<■ Cundy told an interviewer that there. seemed 1 rto be ;C “hoodoo” over this tour. .v