WORLDWIDE – Freight associated news for the first few days of February this year would seem to be all about derailments as stories abound of cargo carrying trains leaving the tracks. An incident last night in Azerbaijan when an accident involving fifty seven wagons carrying oil products resulted in six derailing with three tipping completely over was the fourth such occurrence in the past five days. The train was en route to Georgia from Baku and, fortunately as with the other incidents, there were no reported deaths despite the seriousness of the individual accidents.
Excessive speed whilst approaching points was the initial conclusion into the investigation of last Friday’s incident in which an electric Freightliner locomotive on hire to and operated by Virgin trains freight division left the tracks causing them to buckle and dislodge cables and sleepers. All services on the line had to be suspended after the accident which had occurred in the early hours. The only person aboard was reportedly the driver who was treated for his injuries but the incident caused chaos for commuters as all services between London Euston and Milton Keynes were suspended only being reinstated from 6am Monday.
The US was the scene for two significant accidents in the same period. Firstly a seventy seven wagon freight train of bulk mixed goods derailed just before 9am to the north west of Chicago on Friday again causing major disruption to commuter services. Fortunately of the seven rail cars which left the tracks only one turned over and that contained paper with no resultant injuries. A Canadian Pacific spokesman said there were no hazardous goods onboard the train but two tracks from the three available to commuter services were blocked.
On Sunday another Canadian Pacific freight train heading west bound along the Mississippi River in the city of Red Wing in south east Minnesota derailed at about 10am causing two of the one hundred and eight cars to tip over whilst another seventeen were derailed. Both the upset wagons were fortunately empty but at around thirty five tonnes each they once again caused major disruption needing specialist equipment to remove the wreckage.
Meanwhile in Australia it appears that the hazardous cargo carried aboard the freight train lost in the recent floods is not the only thing which residents near the Edith River crossing have to worry about. The isolated spot is now seeing cargo spilt from the intermodal containers being stranded as the waters recede. Some locals have been accused of ransacking the containers as officials concentrated on clearing the mineral spill. Two containers have been seen still in the centre of the river but local radio reports that crocodiles as well as pigs are sorting through the debris of detritus including supermarket supplies which it seems has deterred anyone from clearing the rest of the rubbish.
Photo:- Detail of the Bletchley locomotive which jumped off the track courtesy of Network Rail.
