TRAIN DERAILED NEAR TIMARU

Southland Times, Issue 24534, 8 September 1941, Page 4

TRAIN DERAILED NEAR TIMARU

SOUTH EXPRESS HELD UP (P.A.) TIMARU, September 6. Rail traffic was considerably delayed today as a result of the derailment of a number of wagons of a goods train at Seadown station, about seven miles north of Timaru. The train, which was coming from the north, reached Seadown at 7 o’clock, when one wagon left the track and travelled off 1 the rails for a distance of threequarters of a mile before finally pulling the following wagons with it. Altogether 14 wagons were involved in the derailment, including seven trucks laden with coal which telescoped, causing a blockage of the main line over a distance of 20 yards. A breakdown gang was soon on the spot from Timaru, while good work was done by a privately owned bulldozer in pushing the smashed wagons and heaps of coal clear. The down express was held at Ashburton for a considerable time, but eventually was sent on, the idea being to tranship the passengers at Seadown. The damage to the permanent way was not great, but the main task was the shifting of the telescoped wagons, which were badly smashed. As a result of the hold-up the train from Dunedin arrived at Christchurch at 8.5 p.m. on Saturday and the train from Invercargill, due at 6.35, arrived at 8.15 p.m. The Rangatira sailed from Lyttelton nt 9.25 p.m. EXPRESS DELAYED Because of the mishap north of Timaru, the Christchurch-Invercargill express which was due here at 9.5 p.m. on Saturday, did not arrive until the early hours of yesterday morning. Arrangements were made, however, to run a special train between Dunedin and Invercargill at the schedule time of the delayed express.