UK: No prosecutions over Welsh train incident
The UK safety watchdog, the Rail Accident Investigation Branch, released its final report on track damage between Pencoed and Llanharan, in South Wales, on 6 March 2021. That thankfully low-key incident brought memories of the far better known...Read more
The legacy of Llangennech: global implications from UK derailment
The final report on a derailment in Wales in the summer of 2020 will have repercussions for the whole rail freight industry. The British Rail Accident Investigation Branch has concluded that the factors responsible for...Read more
Massive freight train crash in Kentucky
A freight train has derailed in Kentucky, USA over the weekend. The serious derailment in the town of Earlington, in the mid-western state of Kentucky, was just a footnote to the devastation brought about by...Read more
Slick work cleans up Welsh oil spill
It has taken six months and the cooperation of agencies from all across Wales to rectify a derailed train, wrecked rails, a massive fire, an oil spill, and an environmental disaster on the railway line...Read more
Six months later and still cleaning the mess of Welsh derailment
The clean up of a Welsh oil train derailment has been called the biggest ever environmental job in the UK, with the exception of offshore accidents which saw oil tankers sunk. Last year’s derailment has...Read moreUK requires brake checks after Wales derailment and fire
Look again at the maintenance arrangements for wagons that primarily carry dangerous goods. That is the word from the Rail Accident Investigation Branch, the independent watchdog for safe operation of the railway network in the...Read more
Brakes at fault in Welsh tanker derailment
An interim report from the Rail Accident Investigation Branch points towards a brake fault as the primary cause of the derailment at Llangennech, Wales, which caused a massive fire and environmental damage. The UK accident...Read more
Network Rail wants wide-ranging changes after Stonehaven crash
The UK rail infrastructure management agency Network Rail has proposed wide-ranging changes to the way it monitors and maintains the earthworks around its tracks. This comes in the light of the fatal accident at Stonehaven...Read moreUK network damage may last months
Major routes wrecked by recent derailments and landslides will be out of action for months, says a report. Some locations will not be repaired until Christmas. The city of Aberdeen could face disruption for most...Read more
Wales update: weekend after the derailment
An oil tanker train derailed in South Wales, late on Wednesday night last week, and caught fire. Dramatic scenes were captured of flames leaping into the night sky, and the train burned for more than...Read more