The Rail Accident Investigation Branch (RAIB) has released its report today into the derailment of a ballast plough brake van at Carlisle on 06 February 2006.
The full report is available here:
A summary of the key points from the report is included below
Summary
On Monday 06 February 2006 a vehicle in an engineering train became derailed on a set of points at the north end of Carlisle station. All the wheels of a plough brake van at the rear of the train derailed. Minor damage was caused to the vehicle and the track, and there were no injuries.
The immediate cause of the derailment was the ballast plough at the leading end of the brake van coming into contact with an adjacent running rail on the approach to the points. Causal factors were the failure to engage the locking keys when stowing the plough after its previous use, and the lack of any process to ensure locking keys are put in place before moving the plough brake van.
Recommendations
The RAIB has made six recommendations as a result of its investigation:
• Two recommendations covering working procedures to prevent a recurrence of this incident
• Four recommendations to address poor practices that were observed during the investigation, but did not contribute to the derailment.
Notes to Editors
1. The Rail Accident Investigation Branch started operation on 17 October 2005. The sole purpose of RAIB investigations is to prevent future accidents and incidents and improve railway safety. The RAIB does not establish blame, liability or carry out prosecutions.
2. For media enquiries please call 020 7944 6984.
Newsdate: 19 September 2006
