RUNAWAY ENGINE.

Auckland Star, Volume LVII, Issue 12, 15 January 1926, Page 8

RUNAWAY ENGINE.

A TEN-MUG BASH. SIGNALMAN SAVES TRAIN AHEAD. V ' A heavily-laden goods train was bound for Sydney on Sunday week, and shortly after passing through Faulconbridge, the automatic coupling between the truck behind the engine and the rest* of the train snapped. The Westinghouse brake went or at once, bringing the long train to a standstill, and the driver and fireman 1 , seeing at once what had happened, shunted back to pick up the train again. The fireman jumped down to make the coupling, and just as he did so the rest of the train moved down the line, bumping heavily into the tender. The shock threw the driver off'the engine, which started to career down the line, and soon gathered terrific speed. Evidently the impact had interfered with the Drakes. On rushed the engine, through Springwood, Valley Heights, and Blaxland, but the signalman at Blaxland junction, checked" its mad career. He had been informed of the runaway by the train crew, and switched the points over just in time. Diverted on to a side-line, the engine crashed through a dead-end and toppled over, being considerably damaged. It was.a big engine of the "T.F." type. Just ahead of the runaway were two heavily-laden stock trains, and the promptness of the signalman averted grave danger of a smash. Passenger traffic was delayed for over an hour while an engine from Valley Heights took the train to Spriingwood, whence it came on to Sydney, after the passenger trains had been sent through.