The Everett, Massachusetts train crash was a railway accident that occurred on December 28, 1966, when a train struck a stalled

tank truck A tank truck, gas truck, fuel truck, or tanker truck (American English) or tanker (British English) is a motor vehicle designed to carry liquids or gases on roads. The largest such vehicles are similar to railroad tank cars, which are also design ...

, killing 13 people.

Crash

At 12:10 am, a

Boston and Maine Railroad The Boston and Maine Railroad was a U.S. Class I railroad in northern New England. Originally chartered in 1835, it became part of what was the Pan Am Railways network in 1983 (most of which was purchased by CSX in 2022). At the end of 1970, B ...

Buddliner traveling from

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

to Rockport struck a stalled tank truck carrying 7,000 gallons of oil at the railroad crossing on 2nd Street in

Everett, Massachusetts Everett is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States, directly north of Boston, bordering the neighborhood of Charlestown. The population was 49,075 at the time of the 2020 United States Census. Everett was the last city in the Un ...

. The Buddliner's cars quickly became engulfed in flames. Its doors jammed on impact and rescuers were forced to break windows to free passengers. 12 people died from burns or smoke inhalation and another 22 were injured. A thirteenth victim died over a month later.

Investigations

The

Interstate Commerce Commission The Interstate Commerce Commission (ICC) was a regulatory agency in the United States created by the Interstate Commerce Act of 1887. The agency's original purpose was to regulate railroads (and later trucking) to ensure fair rates, to eliminat ...

and the Massachusetts Department of Public Utilities held joint hearings into the collision. ICC examiner Robert Boyce believed that the Buddliner's doors were responsible for many of the deaths in the accident, stating "I believe more people would have escaped from the train had the door opened outward instead of inward". Following the hearings, the ICC's enforcement division recommended that: *Emergency exits be required on all passenger trains *Trains be required to reduce speed in congested areas, railroad passenger cars be made of stronger material and have doors that open outward instead of inward *All railroad passenger cars be equipped with emergency kits at both ends of the car *Large motor vehicles and vehicles carrying hazardous materials use designated railroad crossings *All motor vehicles with parking and emergency brakes be have a way for the driver to release these brakes if they are applied automatically *Steps be taken to develop a system to warn trains when vehicles have become stalled on the roadway *A means be provided to operate the

block signal Railway signalling (), also called railroad signaling (), is a system used to control the movement of railway traffic. Trains move on fixed rails, making them uniquely susceptible to collision. This susceptibility is exacerbated by the enormou ...

if a motor vehicles becomes disabled on the tracks *The government implement a program to educate commercial drivers on what to do if they become stalled at a crossing. The Massachusetts Department of Public Utilities blamed the crash on a mechanical defect in the truck's copper right-angle adapter, which became separated, causing the brakes to lose air pressure and triggering the automatic emergency brakes. This issue would not have been detected unless the entire brake system was taken apart. As a result of the investigation, the DPU lowered the speed limit at grade crossings in Everett and

Chelsea Chelsea or Chelsey may refer to: Places Australia * Chelsea, Victoria Canada * Chelsea, Nova Scotia * Chelsea, Quebec United Kingdom * Chelsea, London, an area of London, bounded to the south by the River Thames ** Chelsea (UK Parliament consti ...

from 60 mph for passenger trains and 40 mph for freight trains to 35 mph and ordered a reconstruction of the 2nd Street crossing. The

National Transportation Safety Board The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) is an independent U.S. government investigative agency responsible for civil transportation accident investigation. In this role, the NTSB investigates and reports on aviation accidents and incid ...

blamed a loss of air pressure in the truck's brakes for the accident, but found that the truck's brakes complied with regulations. The NTSB's report blamed the deaths on a lack of emergency exits, darkness caused by the failure of the car's lighting system, and the jamming of the inward opening car door.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Everett, Massachusetts train crash, 1966 1966 disasters in the United States 1966 in Massachusetts 1966 road incidents Accidents and incidents involving Boston and Maine Railroad December 1966 events in the United States 1966 train crash Railway accidents and incidents in Massachusetts Railway accidents in 1966 Railroad crossing accidents in the United States