RAILWAY ACCIDENTS.

Otago Witness, Issue 3885, 28 August 1928, Page 53

RAILWAY ACCIDENTS.

PREVENTION OF DERAILMENT. AUCKLAND ENGINEER’S INVENTION. AUCKLAND, August 25. The menace of derailment illustrated by the rece.nt bad smash of cattle trucks at Paerata has been urging the railway engineers to devise some preventive device. Now an Auckland engineer, Mr N. J. Hamlin, has invented and patented a device which, he claims, will make impossible the disastrous and expensive accidents so prevalent of late. It is possible that a wagon may leave the rails and be dragged for a great disance without the driver or guard of the train being aware of it. The derailed wagon will sometimes cut through the sleepers, making the permanent way unsafe for following traffic. Should a passenger train spread the rails through damage to the sleepers a serious accident might easily result. There is also a risk that the sleepers of a bridge might be broken. Moreover, most of the derailments occur at night. Mr Hamlin’s invention automatically applies the Westinghouse brakes throughout the whole train immediately a wagon leaves.the rails or if an axle breaks. All the wheels are blocked and the train is brought to a standstill within a short distance. The device could be fitted to each vehicle on the train at comparatively small cost. If it justifies the claim of the inventor, the gear should practically eliminate loss of life, merchandise, rolling stock, and permanent way. It is to be hoped that the. invention will be given a trial by the Railways Department.