Howden rail crash
Encyclopedia
The Howden
rail accident in Yorkshire
on 7 August 1840 killed 4 passengers. It occurred when a large cast-iron casting fell from a wagon and derailed the following carriages. It happened on the Hull and Selby Railway
as the train was travelling from Leeds to Hull. The crash was one of the first railway accidents to be investigated by the Railway Inspectorate. One of the worst accidents to have occurred on the new UK rail network, it was also a new phenomenon for the public, although shipwrecks and coal mining accidents were frequent.
, the first head of the Railway Inspectorate (his formal job title was "Inspector-General of Railways") found that the casting had been insecurely lashed to the wagon, and was unstable for carrying by train. The casting was part of a weighing machine intended to be used at Hull Station, and itself weighed about 2.5 tons. It measured 12 feet 6.75 inches by 5 feet 7 inches, and since the wagon was only 10 feet by 7 feet 6 inches, it must have overhung the wagon when being carried. The casting fell from the wagon onto the rails when the train was about 3/4 mile from Howden station.
Since the wagon was just behind the tender, the following passenger carriages were derailed. The first five carriages were empty, but the sixth carriage held several passengers, 4 of whom were either killed on the spot or died later of their injuries.
The inspector interviewed railway staff involved directly (driver and guard) as well as many others involved in loading the casting, or had seen the casting on its wagon before the accident. The railway staff all either asserted that the casting had been lashed to the wagon or said they could not remember one way or the other. Smith however noted
Smith recommended that goods should only be carried where they were secure, and wagons should be fitted with a frame to enclose large items, to prevent their falling off. He also recommended that the foreman of the goods department should personally inspect goods wagons to ensure their security and safety, and confirm in writing that he had done so.
Howden
Howden is a small market town and civil parish in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. It lies north of the M62, on the A614 road about north of Goole and south-west of York. William the Conqueror gave the town to the Bishops of Durham in 1080...
rail accident in Yorkshire
Yorkshire
Yorkshire is a historic county of northern England and the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its great size in comparison to other English counties, functions have been increasingly undertaken over time by its subdivisions, which have also been subject to periodic reform...
on 7 August 1840 killed 4 passengers. It occurred when a large cast-iron casting fell from a wagon and derailed the following carriages. It happened on the Hull and Selby Railway
Hull and Selby Railway
The Hull and Selby Railway was a railway company in the United Kingdom which opened in 1840, connecting Hull with the Leeds and Selby Railway-Origins:...
as the train was travelling from Leeds to Hull. The crash was one of the first railway accidents to be investigated by the Railway Inspectorate. One of the worst accidents to have occurred on the new UK rail network, it was also a new phenomenon for the public, although shipwrecks and coal mining accidents were frequent.
Investigation
Sir Frederick SmithJohn Mark Frederick Smith
Sir John Mark Frederick Smith was a British general and colonel-commandant of the Royal Engineers. He was also the Conservative Member of Parliament for Chatham from 1852 to 1853 and 1857 to 1865...
, the first head of the Railway Inspectorate (his formal job title was "Inspector-General of Railways") found that the casting had been insecurely lashed to the wagon, and was unstable for carrying by train. The casting was part of a weighing machine intended to be used at Hull Station, and itself weighed about 2.5 tons. It measured 12 feet 6.75 inches by 5 feet 7 inches, and since the wagon was only 10 feet by 7 feet 6 inches, it must have overhung the wagon when being carried. The casting fell from the wagon onto the rails when the train was about 3/4 mile from Howden station.
Since the wagon was just behind the tender, the following passenger carriages were derailed. The first five carriages were empty, but the sixth carriage held several passengers, 4 of whom were either killed on the spot or died later of their injuries.
The inspector interviewed railway staff involved directly (driver and guard) as well as many others involved in loading the casting, or had seen the casting on its wagon before the accident. The railway staff all either asserted that the casting had been lashed to the wagon or said they could not remember one way or the other. Smith however noted
A very respectable civil engineer, whom I met when engaged in the examination of the competing lines of railway to Scotland, acquainted me that he had travelled by the train to which the accident happened on the 7th of August, and was in the carriage with the persons who were unfortunately killed. This gentleman is of opinion, from observations he made at the time, that the castingIf the casting had been lashed on to the wagon, clearly it had not been done adequately since the ropes apparently used had chafed through owing to movement of the casting on the wagon.
was not lashed ; but I do not think it right to press this negative evidence against the positive assertions of the persons whose statements I have given above,although it appears to me entitled to every consideration
Had the castings been properly secured by chains, ropes, or wood framing,
the accident of the 7th of August would not have happened, and it is quite clear
that there was great and unpardonable neglect in the parties whose business it
was to attend to such matters at Selby, for it behoved them not only to see that
the casting in question was lashed, but that it was secured beyond the possibility
of accident. The truck on which the casting was placed had a flush floor, with
the exception of a small ledge round the sides and ends ; and therefore as it was
on the lashing alone that the safety of the passengers depended, it is evident that proper precautions were not taken in this instance ; indeed, I am given to understand
that the large casting was supported on the smaller pieces of iron-work
which were lying loose on the floor of the truck.
Smith recommended that goods should only be carried where they were secure, and wagons should be fitted with a frame to enclose large items, to prevent their falling off. He also recommended that the foreman of the goods department should personally inspect goods wagons to ensure their security and safety, and confirm in writing that he had done so.