Railway inquiry into crash

Press, Volume CXI, Issue 32541, 26 February 1971, Page 1

Railway inquiry into crash

(New Zealand Preet Association)

WELLINGTON, February 25. The Railways Department has promised a full inquiry into the cause of the rail crash at Kaiwharawhara, Wellington, in which 33 persons were injured today.

The crash occurred at 11.5 a.m., when a rail-car from Woodville ran into the rear of a multiple unit train stopped at Kaiwharawhara, on the outskirts of the city. Twenty-seven people were taken to Wellington Hospital by ambulance, but only one was admitted. Another passenger was admitted to Hutt

Hospital. The woman in Wellington Hospital is Mrs Barbara Graham, of Waimriomata. whose condition tonight was ported to be satisfactory. She has concussion and bruises to the neck.

Mrs Ellen Pickering, aged 66, of Masterton, was admitted to Hutt Hospital with bruising and shock. Her condition was given tonight as "fairly satisfactory.” About 50 persons were in the rail-car and 150 in the multiple unit, but most of

the injured were rail-car passengers. Most of the injuries were superficial, such as abrasions, bruising, cuts and sprains. Eight ambulances made nine trips to take the injured to hospital, where all except Mrs Graham were discharged after treatment.

The Hutt Valley line was closed for several hours and buses were used to take the uninjured passengers to Wellington, and later to carry W^ftenT’’ 8 The multiple tmit was the 1* am. train from Upper Hutt It had stopped at Kaiwharawhara as usual, but was prevented from carrying on to Wellington by a signal of danger at the south end of the platform. This was because maintenance work on points at the junction of the Hutt Valley and Paekakariki lines, about a quarter of a mile ahead, was still to be comAfter the unit had been stationary for 15 minutes, and just before it was to have been allowed to proceed, the rail-car from Woodville and Masterton, due at Wellington at 11.3 a.m., came round the curve at the north end of the station and struck the stopped train.