South Line Blocked By Derailment At Chertsey

Press, Volume C, Issue 29673, 17 November 1961, Page 14

South Line Blocked By Derailment At Chertsey

Twenty waggons of a north-bound goods train were derailed just north of Chertsey, on the main south railway line, yesterday afternoon. More than 40 yards of the track was torn up and the permanent way for some distance on either side of the derailment was damaged.

The Christchurch-Invercargill express was stopped at Chertsey and the 190 passengers were transferred to buses for the rest of the journey. The accident occurred about 4.30 p.m. just after the goods train, travelling from Timaru. had passed through Chertsey. A passing motorist said he saw what looked like an explosion in the middle of the train and a terrific cloud of dust and shingle. When the dust cleared away railway waggons were piled about 15 or 20 feet high.

There were about 60 waggons on the train, eight in front of the derailment and about 30 left on the rails behind it. It is believed that the derailment was caused when one of the raw axles on an LA. waggon snapped off about 300 yards north of the station. The waggon was dragged about 300 yards, probably forcing the lines apart and smashing the sleepers between them, before one of the following waggons came off the rails and caused the pile-up. Many of the smashed waggons were empty doubledecked sheep crates, some of which were smashed to splinters. Other waggons were loaded with drums of linseed oil, and oil was spattered all over the wreckage. An expensive English saloon car was on one of the derailed waggons, but it suffered no more damage than a broken sidelight and

a splashing with linseed oil. The railway lines were torn right out of their bed and twisted and thrown sideways across the track. The train stopped about 100 yards past the point of derail-men-t. although it is believed that it was travelling at only 15 or 20 miles an hour. The waggon which lost its wh-eel was still attached, with several others behind it. although the wheel-casings on most of them were broken It is believed that the waggon was a relatively new one and a railwayman said all waggons were electronically tested for possible cracks in the axles. The waggon was loaded with sacks of peas at the time and these and ail the other goods aboard the derailed waggons were off-loaded. There was no livestock on the train. About 5.20 p.m. the engine, with a few undamaged waggons left for Rakaia. Six buses from Christchurch arrived shortly after

6 p.m. to collect the passengers on the express. Arriving almost on tune at Chenteey, about 6.25 p.m., the train passengers were transferred to the buses and had left for Christchurch within 10 minutes. Six articulated trucks from Christchurch arrived to carry the goods and luggage from the express. About 7.45 p.m. a breakdown train from Christchurch arrived and it was expected that the line would be cleared by about midnight and would be serviceable again today. The assistant district mechanical engineer (Mr J. H. Graham) and the assistant district manager (Mr G. Wilson) were on the scene by early evening. They said there would be no official statement from the Railways Department yet. South-bound passengers in the rail-car from Christchurch were taken to Timaru by bus, where the northbound rail-car was held and its passengers transferred to the bus for Christchurch. '* The inter-island steamer was delayed and left at 9.34 p.m.