Thirsk rail crash (1967)
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The Thirsk rail crash occurred on 31 July 1967 at Thirsk, North Yorkshire, England on the British Rail East Coast Main Line.
The 12:00 express train from King's Cross to Edinburgh collided with a derailed cement wagon at about 50 mph. The wagon had been travelling in a freight train on an adjacent line. Seven passengers were killed and 45 were injured.
The express was hauled by prototype locomotive DP2, which was written off in the accident. The driver saw the cloud of dust resulting from the wagon derailment and slowed but was unable to stop in time.
The wagon derailment was blamed on excessive wear in the suspension components, thought to be caused by cement dust abrasion, in combination with slight variations in both wheelset diameter and track alignment.
[edit] References
- Ministry of Transport; Col. D. McMullen (1968). Railway accident: Report on the Derailment and subsequent Collision that occurred on 31st July, 1967, at Thirsk in the Eastern Region British Railways. London: H.M.S.O. ISBN 0-11-550036-7.
- Brown, Murray (August 2007). "Disaster at Thirsk – DP2 destroyed". Rail Express 135: 20–23.
