Aracaju train crash
| Aracaju train crash | |
|---|---|
| Details | |
| Date | March 20, 1946 |
| Location | Aracaju |
| Country | Brazil |
| Operator | VFF Leste Brasileiro[1] |
| Type of incident | Derailment |
| Statistics | |
| Trains | 1 |
| Passengers | 1000 |
| Deaths | 185 |
| Injuries | 300 |
The Aracaju train crash, which occurred on March 20, 1946 is the worst ever rail disaster in Brazil; killing 185 people[2] and injuring 300 others.[3] The accident happened near Aracaju, capital of the coastal state of Sergipe, 800 miles northeast of Rio de Janeiro.[2]
The train concerned was a suburban service operating between Aracaju and Capela, Sergipe[4] and carrying about one thousand passengers.[2] The locomotive, baggage car and three passenger cars[5] were derailed whilst descending a steep incline near Aracaju,[2] most of the dead being "smashed within the cars", "Many bodies were mutilated so badly that identification was impossible".[5]
Grief-stricken relatives came to the scene and nearly lynched the surviving locomotive engineer who depending on the source either took refuge in a police station[3] or fled the area later to surrender in the town of Laranjeiras, Sergipe.[2] The train conductors also fled.[5]
References
- ↑ http://www.estacoesferroviarias.com.br/ba_propria/scristovao.htm São Cristóvão -- Estações Ferroviárias do Estado de Sergipe
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 Railway Wrecks by Edgar A. Haine, page 145-146, publ 1993, ISBN 0-8453-4844-2
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 http://trove.nla.gov.au/ndp/del/article/17973141 The Sydney Morning Herald Friday 22 March 1946
- ↑ The San Mateo Times, California, March 21, 1946
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Daily Kennebec Journal, Maine, March 21, 1946
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Coordinates: 10°48′46″S 37°09′50″W / 10.81278°S 37.16389°W