- Darlington rail crash
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Darlington rail crash Date and time 27 June 1928 Location Darlington Bank Top station Rail line East Coast Main Line Cause Driver misunderstood signals Trains 2 Deaths 25 Injuries 45 List of UK rail accidents by year The Darlington rail crash occurred on 27 June 1928, at Darlington railway station in England county of Durham.Two steam trains collided and 25 were killed.
The accident was a head-on collision caused by a driver's error. The inexperienced driver of a parcels train misunderstood the complicated signalling installation in the station and went too far past a signal which only allowed him to proceed a limited distance forward. His engine fouled the main line and was run into by an excursion train at about 45 mph. Two carriages of the excursion train "concertina'd" or "telescoped" and all the deaths occurred in these carriages; demonstrating structural defficiencies common to most passenger stock at the time. This was a terrible tragedy and should always be remembered.
Further details may be found in a number of books on British railway accidents e.g. those by Rolt and Hamilton.
Coordinates: 54°31′04″N 1°32′48″W / 54.5178°N 1.54677°W
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