RAILWAY ACCIDENT

Manawatu Standard, Volume LX, Issue 139, 13 May 1940, Page 2

RAILWAY ACCIDENT

BRIDGE DAMAGED. ALL TRAFFIC STOPPED. When a heavy Jogging tractor on a truck at the rear ol a goods train broke Jrom its moorings extensive damage was caused to the bridge over the Manawatu River at • Longburn, about 4 a.m. yesterday, by. a crane arm which jmojected over the side of tile truck. The heavy arm mowed off ironbark braces a • foot thick, cracked and pushed others out of position, and bent several substantial iron truss rods. 1 .

In consequence, . all goods and passenger traffic along the line has l>een suspended and passengers are being transhipped by road between Palmerston North and Linton and vice-versa. Arrangements were being made to-day for the passage over the bridge of the two north-bound expresses tonight. The eng’ne is to be transferred to the rear of each train at Linton and will , push the train to the bridge but not go on it, as the major damage is at the southern end. A light engine from Palmerston North will go on to the bridge from the northern end and will later be replaced by an express engine. Because of the accident, the excursion train from Palmerston North _to Wellington was cancelled, this being due to leave on Sunday morning. Passengers from other trains were transhipped by motor-bus. North-bound passengers who were occupying sleeping cars in the two expresses lost night had. bv force of circumstances, to forgo their beds for seats. EXTENT OF DAMAGE.

Alter causing the damage the upper gear ol the tractor broke away lrom the main part of the machine and fell below the train and the superstructure of the bridge. The chassis, however, was dragged with such force into the Jront corner of the guard’s van that it. was completely crushed in, the tractor resting oh the seat where the guard, Mr L. G. Robertson, had been sitting. He suffered no injury, but had a very narrow escape. The train was pulled up after it had crossed the bridge, and railway officials are amazed that there was no derailment as each blow on the bridge must have had the effect of lifting the bogeys. The bending of the truss rods has caused the track to lift a little, while at one place a rail is bent. Sleepers were twisted out of alignment and damaged. After the upper gear had been thrown aside, the chassis of the tractor caused extensive damage to the other side of the bridge superstructure, bending iron truss rods and splitting and cracking wooden braces here and there all the way across. Later the chassis was hauled off the truck and van by a gang of men and deposited down a shallow embankment alongside the line.

Mr ltol>erts.on was sitting on the seat in the corner of the van that was demolished and must have instinctively jumped clear. He: heard the noise of the impacts of the tractor with the bridge and recollects wondering what was causing it. In the next second the van was .smashed in. The door was torn off and thrown into the river-bed below. Materials for the repairing of the bridge were collected from Wellington, the Hutt workshops and ifrpnt various points on the Woodville side of the ranges. Immediately these were available teams of men-were able to commence in earnest, on repairing the bridge and these' operations continued throughout the night under floodlights. Provided no undue delays occur, the hope is held that bv tomorrow night the full service will be restored.

Mr G. J. Bertinshaw, chief engineer of the department, and Mr 11. C. Lusty, assistant-engineer, arrived at the scene yesterday and remained overnight. The Wellington-Napier express took (he Wairarapa route to-day and passengers duo to join it at Palmerston North were taken to Woodville by motor-bus.