The Dagenham East rail crash was a railway accident on the

London, Tilbury and Southend line The London, Tilbury and Southend line, also known as Essex Thameside, is a commuter railway line on the British railway system. It connects Fenchurch Street station, in central London, with destinations in east London and Essex, including , , , ...

British Railways British Railways (BR), which from 1965 traded as British Rail, was a state-owned company that operated most of the overground rail transport in Great Britain from 1948 to 1997. It was formed from the nationalisation of the Big Four British rai ...

which occurred at

Dagenham Dagenham () is a town in East London, England, within the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham. Dagenham is centred east of Charing Cross. It was historically a rural parish in the Becontree Hundred of Essex, stretching from Hainault Forest ...

, United Kingdom. The accident took place at around 19:34 on 30 January 1958 and was a

rear-end collision A rear-end collision (often called simply rear-end or in the UK a shunt) occurs when a vehicle crashes into the one in front of it. Common factors contributing to rear-end collisions include driver inattention or distraction, tailgating, panic ...

involving two late-running trains. Conditions at Dagenham East station were foggy at the time. The accident occurred after one train had

passed a signal at danger A signal passed at danger (SPAD), known in the United States as a stop signal overrun and in Canada as passing a stop signal, is an event on a railway where a train passes a stop signal without authority. In the United States and Canada, this ...

due to a driver error in the thick fog. Ten passengers were killed in the accident and 89 injured. Four members of railway staff were also injured. The trains involved were the LMS 2-6-4 tank engine hauled 18:20

Fenchurch Street Fenchurch Street is a street in London linking Aldgate at its eastern end with Lombard Street and Gracechurch Street in the west. It is a well-known thoroughfare in the City of London financial district and is the site of many corporate office ...

Shoeburyness Shoeburyness (; also called Shoebury) is a suburb of the city of Southend-on-Sea, in the City of Southend-on-Sea, in the ceremonial county of Essex, England. east of the city centre. It was an urban district of Essex from 1894 to 1933, when it ...

and the BR standard 2-6-4 tank hauled 18:35 Fenchurch Street to

Thorpe Bay Thorpe Bay is an area of the city of Southend-on-Sea, in the City of Southend-on-Sea, in the ceremonial county of Essex, England. located on the Thames Estuary. Thorpe Bay is situated within the Thorpe ward Ward may refer to: Division or un ...

. Each train consisted of 11 coaches with approximately 500 passengers. The 18:35 train ploughed into the back of the 18:20 departure which demolished three carriages and derailed several others. The locomotive of the 18:35 train and leading carriage were derailed. Some wreckage blocked the adjacent

London Underground The London Underground (also known simply as the Underground or by its nickname the Tube) is a rapid transit system serving Greater London and some parts of the adjacent ceremonial counties of England, counties of Buckinghamshire, Essex and He ...

line but did not cause any further accidents. One of the locomotives involved in this accident (80079) survives today at the

Severn Valley Railway The Severn Valley Railway is a heritage railway in Shropshire and Worcestershire, England. The heritage line runs along the Severn Valley from Bridgnorth to Kidderminster, following the course of the River Severn for much of its route, and c ...

References

External links

Major Incidents Emergency Planning College
(Excel). Retrieved 7 June 2006
Report of the Collision
(PDF). Retrieved 7 June 2006
British Pathe – "Dagenham. Another Fog Disaster"
{{coord, 51.54228, N, 0.15553, E, type:event_region:GB, display=title, format=dms Railway accidents and incidents in London Transport in the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham Railway accidents and incidents in Essex Railway accidents in 1958 1958 disasters in the United Kingdom 1958 in England 1958 in London Railway accidents involving fog London, Tilbury and Southend Railway Railway accidents involving a signal passed at danger Dagenham Accidents and incidents involving British Rail January 1958 events in the United Kingdom Train collisions in England Rail accidents caused by a driver's error