List Of Rail Accidents (1990–1999)
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This is a list of rail accidents from 1990 to 1999.


1990

* January 4 – ''Pakistan'' – Sukkur rail disaster: A
Multan Multan is the List of cities in Punjab, Pakistan by population, fifth-most populous city in the Punjab, Pakistan, Punjab province of Pakistan. Located along the eastern bank of the Chenab River, it is the List of cities in Pakistan by populatio ...
Karachi Karachi is the capital city of the Administrative units of Pakistan, province of Sindh, Pakistan. It is the List of cities in Pakistan by population, largest city in Pakistan and 12th List of largest cities, largest in the world, with a popul ...
'' Bahauddin Zakaria Express'' collided head-on with an empty freight train at Sangi station,
Sukkur Sukkur is a city in the Pakistani province of Sindh along the western bank of the Indus River, directly across from the historic city of Rohri. Sukkur is the List of cities in Sindh by population, third largest city in Sindh after Karachi and H ...
,
Sindh Sindh ( ; ; , ; abbr. SD, historically romanized as Sind (caliphal province), Sind or Scinde) is a Administrative units of Pakistan, province of Pakistan. Located in the Geography of Pakistan, southeastern region of the country, Sindh is t ...
. The train was to pass through Sangi, but incorrectly set rail points directed the train to a siding where the freight train was parked. 307 people were killed and another 700 more injured in Pakistan's worst rail disaster. * February 2 – ''West Germany'' –
Rüsselsheim train disaster The Rüsselsheim train disaster occurred on February 2, 1990, on the Main Railway near the Rüsselsheim station in West Germany. With 17 persons killed and 145 injured the train collision is amongst the most serious in rapid transit. Account o ...
: Two
S-Bahn The S-Bahn ( , ), , is a hybrid urban rail, urban–suburban rail system serving a metropolitan region predominantly in German language, German-speaking countries. Some of the larger S-Bahn systems provide service similar to rapid transit syst ...
commuter trains collide in Rüsselsheim, killing 17 and injuring 80. * February 16 – ''Switzerland'' – A passenger train collided with a rail-mounted crane at
Saxon The Saxons, sometimes called the Old Saxons or Continental Saxons, were a Germanic people of early medieval "Old" Saxony () which became a Carolingian " stem duchy" in 804, in what is now northern Germany. Many of their neighbours were, like th ...
, killing three people and injuring 12. * March 7 – ''United States'' – 1990 Philadelphia subway accident: A bolt securing a
traction motor A traction motor is an electric motor used for propulsion of a vehicle, such as locomotives, electric vehicle, electric or hydrogen vehicles, or electric multiple unit trains. Traction (engineering), Traction motors are used in electrically powe ...
on a
SEPTA SEPTA, the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority, is a regional public transportation authority that operates bus, rapid transit, commuter rail, light rail, and electric trolleybus services for nearly four million people througho ...
subway-elevated train failed, causing the train to derail. Three people were killed and 150 injured. * May 6 – ''Australia'' – Cowan rail accident: The
3801 Limited East Coast Heritage Rail is a Non-profit organization, not for profit company Limited By Guarantee, limited by guarantee formed in June 1985 as 3801 Limited to operate steam locomotive 3801 and its associated rolling stock. The company operated h ...
special steam passenger train stalled while climbing a steep gradient from the Hawkesbury River to Cowan. It was then rear-ended by a CityRail inter-urban passenger train, killing six people. Sand applied to the rails interfered with track signals and gave the CityLine train a false clear indication. * August 20 – ''Poland'' – Ursus rail crash: Passenger train ''Silesia'' – from
Prague Prague ( ; ) is the capital and List of cities and towns in the Czech Republic, largest city of the Czech Republic and the historical capital of Bohemia. Prague, located on the Vltava River, has a population of about 1.4 million, while its P ...
to
Warsaw Warsaw, officially the Capital City of Warsaw, is the capital and List of cities and towns in Poland, largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the Vistula, River Vistula in east-central Poland. Its population is officially estimated at ...
 – telescoped the last car of a passenger train from Szklarska Poręba to Warsaw, killing 16 and injuring 43. * December 12 – ''United States'' – Back Bay rail accident:
Amtrak The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, Trade name, doing business as Amtrak (; ), is the national Passenger train, passenger railroad company of the United States. It operates intercity rail service in 46 of the 48 contiguous United Stat ...
's ''
Night Owl Night Owl may refer to: *An owl *Night owl (person), a person who is most active or creative during the night * ''Night Owl'' (film), a 1993 film by Jeffrey Arsenault *"Night Owl", a ''Bangkok Post'' newspaper column by Bernard Trink * Night Owl ( ...
'', the
Northeast Corridor The Northeast Corridor (NEC) is an electrified railroad line in the Northeast megalopolis of the United States. Owned primarily by Amtrak, it runs from Boston in the north to Washington, D.C., in the south, with major stops in Providence, Rhod ...
's overnight train, travelling at excessive speed around a curve inside a tunnel, derailed and rear-ended an
MBTA The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (abbreviated MBTA and known colloquially as "the T") is the public agency responsible for operating most public transportation services in Greater Boston, Massachusetts. The MBTA transit network in ...
commuter train Commuter rail or suburban rail is a passenger rail service that primarily operates within a metropolitan area, connecting commuters to a central city from adjacent suburbs or commuter towns. Commuter rail systems can use locomotive-hauled tr ...
in
Back Bay station Back Bay station (also signed as Back Bay · South End) is an intermodal passenger station in Boston, Massachusetts. It is located just south of Copley Square in Boston's Back Bay and South End neighborhoods. It serves MBTA Commuter Rail and ...
in
Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...
. 453 people were injured. * December 20 – ''Taiwan'' – A
Kaohsiung Kaohsiung, officially Kaohsiung City, is a special municipality located in southern Taiwan. It ranges from the coastal urban center to the rural Yushan Range with an area of . Kaohsiung City has a population of approximately 2.73 million p ...
-
Taipei , nickname = The City of Azaleas , image_map = , map_caption = , pushpin_map = Taiwan#Asia#Pacific Ocean#Earth , coordinates = , subdivision_type = Country ...
express train collided at a level crossing at Lu Chu, Kaohsiung with a bus carrying 51 farmers which burst into flames, killing 25 people, and injuring 32.


1991

* January 7 – ''Hungary'' – Tram No. 1342 (Ganz bendytram) operated by BKV derailed and overturned in
Budapest Budapest is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns of Hungary, most populous city of Hungary. It is the List of cities in the European Union by population within city limits, tenth-largest city in the European Union by popul ...
at the corner of Vajda Péter utca and Orczy út due to an unintentional point switching by the tram driver, killing three passengers and a pedestrian. * May 3 -
Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...
- In
Henty, New South Wales Henty is a town in southwestern New South Wales close to the boundaries of the South West Slopes and the Riverina districts, almost midway between the regional cities of Albury and Wagga Wagga. At the 2006 census, Henty had a population of 863 ...
, a
New South Wales XPT The New South Wales XPT (short for eXpress Passenger Train) is a class of diesel locomotive, diesel-powered passenger trains built by Commonwealth Engineering, Comeng and ABB. Based on the British Rail-designed InterCity 125, High Speed Train, ...
train locomotive derailed due to track failures, 6 people were injured. * May 14 – ''Japan'' –
Shigaraki train disaster The was a railway accident that occurred in Shigaraki, Shiga, Shigaraki (now Koka, Shiga, Koka), Shiga Prefecture, Japan on May 14, 1991. A Shigaraki Kōgen Railway (SKR) train and a West Japan Railway Company (JR West) train head-on collision, ...
,
Shigaraki, Shiga was a town located in Kōka District, Shiga Prefecture, Japan. Population As of 2004, the town had an estimated population of 13,885 and a density of 84.92 persons per km2. The total area is 163.5 km2. History On October 1, 2004, Shiga ...
: A Shigaraki Kōgen Railway (SKR) passenger train collided head-on with a JR West passenger train after the SKR train passed a red signal, killing 42 people. A malfunctioning signal gave the JR West train a green signal, when the approaching SKR train should have turned the signal to red. Confusion among SKR staff stemming from the signal problems prompted them to send the train against a red signal. * July 15 – ''United States'' –
Dunsmuir, California Dunsmuir is a city in Siskiyou County, California. It is on the upper Sacramento River. Its population is 1,707 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, up from 1,650 from the 2010 United States census, 2010 census. Dunsmuir is curren ...
California's largest hazardous chemical spill Dunsmuir is a city in Siskiyou County, California. It is on the upper Sacramento River. Its population is 1,707 as of the 2020 census, up from 1,650 from the 2010 census. Dunsmuir is currently a hub for tourism in Northern California, with I ...
: A 19,000-gallon (72,000 L) tank car containing the pesticide/herbicide
metam sodium Metam sodium is an organosulfur compound with the formula . The compound is a sodium salt of a dithiocarbamate. The compound exists as a colorless dihydrate, but most commonly it is encountered as an aqueous solution. It is used as a soil fumig ...
derailed from a
Southern Pacific The Southern Pacific (or Espee from the railroad initials) was an American Class I railroad network that existed from 1865 to 1996 and operated largely in the Western United States. The system was operated by various companies under the names ...
freight train and tumbled off the bridge over the
Sacramento River The Sacramento River () is the principal river of Northern California in the United States and is the largest river in California. Rising in the Klamath Mountains, the river flows south for before reaching the Sacramento–San Joaquin River D ...
at the Cantara Loop before rupturing on the rocks below, spilling the car's entire load into the river. Virtually every aquatic organism on a 40-mile (64 km) stretch of river was killed. * July 21 – ''United Kingdom'' – Glasgow: Newton rail accident killed four and injured 22. Junction layout was cited as a contributing factor. * July 29 – ''United States'' – Seacliff, California: A Southern Pacific freight train carrying hazardous chemicals derailed in the
Ventura County Ventura County () is a county located in the southern part of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 843,843. The largest city is Oxnard, and the county seat is the city of Ventura. Ventura County comprises ...
coastal community of Seacliff. Four of the 14 railroad cars that derailed were carrying two types of chemicals: a half-strength aqueous hydrazine solution used to make agricultural, metal plating, plastics and photo processing chemicals; and naphthalene, an industrial solvent for making other chemicals. * July 31 – ''United States'' –
Lugoff, South Carolina Lugoff ( ) is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in Kershaw County, South Carolina, United States. The population was 9,990 at the 2020 census, up from 7,434 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Columbia, South Carolin ...
: The
Amtrak The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, Trade name, doing business as Amtrak (; ), is the national Passenger train, passenger railroad company of the United States. It operates intercity rail service in 46 of the 48 contiguous United Stat ...
''Silver Star'' derailed the rear portion of a former
Seaboard Air Line The Seaboard Air Line Railroad , known colloquially as the Seaboard Railroad during its time, was an American railroad that existed from April 14, 1900, until July 1, 1967, when it merged with the Atlantic Coast Line Railroad, its longtime ri ...
of the
CSXT CSXT may refer to: *CSX Transportation, a freight railroad company *Civilian Space eXploration Team The Civilian Space eXploration Team, also known as the CSXT, is a team of around 30 civilians interested in private spaceflight. The team was cr ...
Railroad after a faulty
switch In electrical engineering, a switch is an electrical component that can disconnect or connect the conducting path in an electrical circuit, interrupting the electric current or diverting it from one conductor to another. The most common type o ...
split as the train passed over it, directing a coach into a hopper car standing on a siding, and derailing equipment. Eight passengers died and 76 were injured. * August 5 – ''Canada'' –
Kinsella, Alberta Kinsella is a hamlet in Alberta, Canada within Beaver County. It is located along Highway 14 and the CN Railway and has an elevation of . The hamlet is located in census division No. 10 and in the federal riding of Vegreville-Wainwright. ...
: A CN intermodal train struck a truck carrying light crude oil at a marked highway crossing. The impact ignited the oil and significantly damaged the train, killing the three train crew members and the truck driver. * August 28 – ''United States'' –
New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
:
1991 Union Square derailment On August 28, 1991, a 4 Lexington Avenue Express train on the New York City Subway's IRT Lexington Avenue Line derailed as it was about to enter 14th Street–Union Square station, killing five people. It was the worst accident on the subway sy ...
- Five people were killed and more than 200 injured after a #4 Lexington Avenue express train derailed over a
switch In electrical engineering, a switch is an electrical component that can disconnect or connect the conducting path in an electrical circuit, interrupting the electric current or diverting it from one conductor to another. The most common type o ...
just north of Union Square. Two subway cars broke open as they struck the steel tunnel support beams. The uninjured motorman, who was reported to have been handling the train erratically, was later found to be legally drunk. The accident was instrumental in imposing new federal rules for engineer certification and toxicology testing. * September 6 – ''
Republic of the Congo The Republic of the Congo, also known as Congo-Brazzaville, the Congo Republic or simply the Congo (the last ambiguously also referring to the neighbouring Democratic Republic of the Congo), is a country located on the western coast of Central ...
'' – More than 100 people were killed after a passenger train from
Pointe Noire Pointe-Noire (; , with the letter d following French spelling standards) is the second largest city in the Republic of the Congo, following the capital of Brazzaville, and an autonomous Departments of the Republic of the Congo, department and ...
collided head-on with a goods train carrying timber from
Brazzaville Brazzaville () is the capital (political), capital and largest city of the Republic of the Congo. Administratively, it is a Departments of the Republic of the Congo, department and a Communes of the Republic of the Congo, commune. Constituting t ...
. * October 16 – ''France'' – . A freight train overran a closed signal after its engineer suffered a heart attack, and fouled the path of the
Nice Nice ( ; ) is a city in and the prefecture of the Alpes-Maritimes department in France. The Nice agglomeration extends far beyond the administrative city limits, with a population of nearly one millionMelun Melun () is a commune in the Seine-et-Marne department in the Île-de-France region, north-central France. It is located on the southeastern outskirts of Paris, about from the centre of the capital. Melun is the prefecture of Seine-et-Marne, ...
, killing 16 people. The deadman mechanism worked normally but failed to stop the train in time. This led to the adoption of the KVB automatic train control system. * November 15 – ''Taiwan'' – 1991 Miaoli train collision - A northbound
Tze-Chiang Train Tze-Chiang (), also Tzu-chiang or Ziqiang, is a type of limited express train service operated by Taiwan Railway (TR). Of the five service classes operated by TR, the Tze-Chiang service is the fastest. Ticketing is done on the basis of mileage ( ...
ran over the stop signal and rear-ended a southbound Chukuang train, killing 30 people and injuring 112. * December 7 – ''United Kingdom'' – Severn Tunnel rail accident - An InterCity 125
diesel multiple unit A diesel multiple unit or DMU is a multiple-unit train powered by on-board diesel engines. A DMU requires no separate locomotive, as the engines are incorporated into one or more of the carriages. Diesel-powered single-unit railcars are also ...
was rear-ended by a Class 155 Sprinter inside the
Severn Tunnel The Severn Tunnel () is a railway tunnel in the United Kingdom, linking South Gloucestershire in the west of England to Monmouthshire in south Wales under the estuary of the River Severn. It was constructed by the Great Western Railway (GWR) be ...
, injuring 185 people.


1992

* March 3 – ''Russia'' – Podsosenka train disaster: ''Yurmala'' passenger train No. 004 ran a red light at a restrictive signal and collided head-on with oncoming freight train No. 3455 before catching fire, killing 43 people and injuring 108. * March 12 – ''Sweden'' – '' 1992 Gothenburg tram accident''. An unmanned tram rolled down a street in central Gothenburg at high speed and crashed into waiting passengers at a tram stop at Vasaplatsen, killing 13 people. * August 8 – ''Switzerland'' – A train and a tram collided at
Zurich Zurich (; ) is the list of cities in Switzerland, largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zurich. It is in north-central Switzerland, at the northwestern tip of Lake Zurich. , the municipality had 448,664 inhabitants. The ...
, killing one person and injuring nine. * April 29 – ''United States'' – at Bell King Road in
Newport News, Virginia Newport News () is an Independent city (United States), independent city in southeastern Virginia, United States. At the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 186,247. Located in the Hampton Roads region, it is the List of c ...
, a crossing without gates or warning lights,
Amtrak The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, Trade name, doing business as Amtrak (; ), is the national Passenger train, passenger railroad company of the United States. It operates intercity rail service in 46 of the 48 contiguous United Stat ...
's '' Colonial'' passenger train collided with a dump truck, killing the truck driver and injuring 54 passengers. * June 30 – ''United States''– Nemadji River train derailment: near
Superior, Wisconsin Superior (; ) is a city in Douglas County, Wisconsin, United States, and its county seat. The population was 26,751 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Located at the western end of Lake Superior in northwestern Wisconsin, the city l ...
, a
Burlington Northern The Burlington Northern Railroad was a United States–based railroad company formed from a merger of four major U.S. railroads. Burlington Northern operated between 1970 and 1995. Its historical lineage begins in the earliest days of railroad ...
freight train derailed on a trestle, spilling benzene into the
Nemadji River The Nemadji River is a river rising in Pine County, Minnesota, United States, which flows through Carlton County, Minnesota, and Douglas County, Wisconsin, to Lake Superior. The river is long measured from its source in Maheu Lake in Pine Coun ...
and releasing a toxic vapor which killed wild animals and outside pets. * August 12 – ''United States'' – Just outside
Newport News Newport News () is an independent city in southeastern Virginia, United States. At the 2020 census, the population was 186,247. Located in the Hampton Roads region, it is the fifth-most populous city in Virginia and 140th-most populous city i ...
, Virginia, Amtrak's ''Colonial'' passenger train, traveling at nearly , entered a switch that had just moments before been opened by a pair of
saboteur Sabotage is a deliberate action aimed at weakening a polity, government, effort, or organization through subversion, obstruction, demoralization, destabilization, division, disruption, or destruction. One who engages in sabotage is a ''sabo ...
s, injuring dozens. The saboteurs, Coast Guardsmen Joseph Loomis and Raymond Bornman Jr., were sentenced to federal prison terms. * October 10 - ''South Africa'' – A steam passenger train running during the Lady Grey Spring Festival derailed at high speed killing the engine driver and 5 passengers. * October 11 –
China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...
Liaoning ) , image_skyline = , image_alt = , image_caption = Clockwise: Mukden Palace in Shenyang, Xinghai Square in Dalian, Dalian coast, Yalu River at Dandong , image_map = Liaoning in China (+all claims hatched).svg , ...
,
Fushun Fushun ( zh, s=, t=, p=Fǔshùn, historically Fuxi ()) is a prefecture level city in Liaoning province, China, about east of Shenyang, with a total area of , of which is the city proper. Situated on the Hun River ("muddy river"), it is one o ...
– Two locomotives of the
Shenyang Railway Bureau China Railway Shenyang Group, officially abbreviated as CR Shenyang or CR-Shenyang, formerly, Shenyang Railway Administration is a subsidiary company under the jurisdiction of the China Railway Group (formerly the Ministry of Railway). The rail ...
Meihekou locomotive depot were reconnected to pull a freight train through the Shenyang-Jilin Railway on approach to Shimenling railway station and prepare to stop a passenger train from
Tianjin railway station Tianjin Railway Station (), also translated as Tianjin Station, is the principal railway station in Tianjin, China. It was established in 1888, rebuilt in 1987–1988, and restructured in 2007–2008. Its Chinese big title was written by Deng X ...
to Jilin railway station. Because one of the corner cock of the train was closed, the brake failed. To avoid a collision, the freight train derailed and overturned after entering the safety siding of Shimenling railway station, killing four locomotive attendants. * November 15 – ''Germany'' – 11 people died and 52 were injured after the wreckage of a derailed freight train was hit by an express train near
Northeim Northeim (; ) is a town in Lower Saxony, Germany, seat of the Northeim (district), district of Northeim, with a population of 30,118 as of 31 December 2023. It lies on the German Half-Timbered House Road. History Northeim is first mentioned in ...
. * November 30 – ''Netherlands'' –
Hoofddorp train accident The Hoofddorp train accident in the Dutch municipality Haarlemmermeer took place on 30 November 1992. Whilst ''en route'' to Vlissingen, a Koploper-type passenger train derailed at about 7:15 near Hoofddorp. Five people were killed and 33 were inj ...
: An Intercity train, travelling from
Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , ; ; ) is the capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, largest city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It has a population of 933,680 in June 2024 within the city proper, 1,457,018 in the City Re ...
to
Vlissingen Vlissingen (; ) is a Municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality and a city in the southwestern Netherlands on the island of Walcheren. With its strategic location between the Scheldt river and the North Sea, Vlissingen has been an importan ...
derailed near Hoofddorp, killing five people and injuring 33.


1993

* January 18 - United States - 1993 South Shore Line collision, two
South Shore Line The South Shore Line is an electrically powered commuter rail line operated by the Northern Indiana Commuter Transportation District (NICTD) between Millennium Station in downtown Chicago, Illinois and the South Bend Airport station in Sout ...
trains collided head-on in
Gary, Indiana Gary ( ) is a city in Lake County, Indiana, United States. The population was 69,093 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it Indiana's List of municipalities in Indiana, eleventh-most populous city. The city has been historical ...
, killing 7 people and injuring 70 people. * January 31 – ''Kenya'' – Along the Ngai Ndethya River near Mtito Andei, a
Kenya Railways Kenya Railways Corporation (KRC), also Kenya Railways (KR) is the national railway of Kenya. Established in 1977, KR is a state corporation. History The original Uganda Railway was transformed into the East African Railways and Harbours Co ...
train traveling from
Mombasa Mombasa ( ; ) is a coastal city in southeastern Kenya along the Indian Ocean. It was the first capital of British East Africa, before Nairobi was elevated to capital status in 1907. It now serves as the capital of Mombasa County. The town is ...
to
Nairobi Nairobi is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Kenya. The city lies in the south-central part of Kenya, at an elevation of . The name is derived from the Maasai language, Maasai phrase , which translates to 'place of cool waters', a ...
derailed due to flooding from the river, killing 140 people. * March 28 – ''South Korea'' – a
Mugunghwa-ho The Mugunghwa-ho () is a class of train operated by Korail, the main railway operator of South Korea. Mugunghwa trains are Korail's slowest tier of trains stopping at a number of towns and villages, and operating over a number of lines that are ...
train in the vicinity of
Gupo station Gupo station is a Korail station on the Gyeongbu Line, between Hwamyeong station and Sasang station, located in northern Busan, South Korea. It was opened on 1 January 1905, and is connected with the subway Gupo station on Busan Metro Line ...
in
Busan Busan (), officially Busan Metropolitan City, is South Korea's second list of cities in South Korea by population, most populous city after Seoul, with a population of over 3.3 million as of 2024. Formerly romanized as Pusan, it is the economi ...
rolled over due to
subsidence Subsidence is a general term for downward vertical movement of the Earth's surface, which can be caused by both natural processes and human activities. Subsidence involves little or no horizontal movement, which distinguishes it from slope mov ...
under a section of track caused by nearby construction, killing 78 people and injuring 198, making it the worst rail accident in South Korea. * September 22 – ''United States'' –
Big Bayou Canot rail accident On September 22, 1993, an Amtrak ''Sunset Limited'' passenger train derailed on the CSX Transportation Big Bayou Canot Bridge near Mobile, Alabama, United States. It was caused by displacement of a span and deformation of the rails when a tow of ...
, near
Mobile, Alabama Mobile ( , ) is a city and the county seat of Mobile County, Alabama, United States. The population was 187,041 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. After a successful vote to annex areas west of the city limits in July 2023, Mobil ...
:
Barge A barge is typically a flat-bottomed boat, flat-bottomed vessel which does not have its own means of mechanical propulsion. Original use was on inland waterways, while modern use is on both inland and ocean, marine water environments. The firs ...
s being pushed by an off-course
towboat A pusher, pusher craft, pusher boat, pusher tug, or towboat, is a boat designed for pushing barges or car floats. In the United States, the industries that use these vessels refer to them as towboats. These vessels are characterized by a squa ...
collided with a bridge piling; the bridge shifted out of alignment, creating a kink in the rails on the
CSXT CSXT may refer to: *CSX Transportation, a freight railroad company *Civilian Space eXploration Team The Civilian Space eXploration Team, also known as the CSXT, is a team of around 30 civilians interested in private spaceflight. The team was cr ...
's former
Louisville & Nashville The Louisville and Nashville Railroad , commonly called the L&N, was a Class I railroad that operated freight and passenger services in the southeast United States. Chartered by the Commonwealth of Kentucky in 1850, the road grew into one of t ...
Gulfcoast line. Minutes later, Amtrak's ''
Sunset Limited The ''Sunset Limited'' is a long-distance passenger train run by Amtrak, operating on a route between New Orleans and Los Angeles. Major stops include Houston, San Antonio and El Paso in Texas, as well as Tucson, Arizona. Opening in 1894 thr ...
'' derailed at high speed on the misaligned track and plunges into the water, causing an enormous fuel spill and fire that killed 47 people in
Amtrak The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, Trade name, doing business as Amtrak (; ), is the national Passenger train, passenger railroad company of the United States. It operates intercity rail service in 46 of the 48 contiguous United Stat ...
's deadliest accident. * November 2 - ''Indonesia'' - 20 people were killed and 200 people were injured after 2 commuter train collided head-on in Ratujaya, near
Depok Depok ( Sundanese: ᮓᮨᮕᮧᮊ᮪) is a landlocked city in West Java province. It is located directly south of Jakarta, it is the third largest urban centre in the Greater Jakarta metropolitan area after Jakarta and Bekasi and it has an area ...
. * November 11 – ''United States'' – near
Kelso, Washington Kelso is a city in the southwestern part of the State of Washington and is the county seat of Cowlitz County. At the 2020 census, the population was 12,720. Kelso is part of the Longview, Washington Metropolitan statistical area, which has ...
: A
Union Pacific The Union Pacific Railroad is a Class I freight-hauling railroad that operates 8,300 locomotives over routes in 23 U.S. states west of Chicago and New Orleans. Union Pacific is the second largest railroad in the United States after BNSF, ...
and a
Burlington Northern The Burlington Northern Railroad was a United States–based railroad company formed from a merger of four major U.S. railroads. Burlington Northern operated between 1970 and 1995. Its historical lineage begins in the earliest days of railroad ...
freight train collided head-on after the Burlington Northern train had failed to stop for a red signal, likely due to dense fog, killing the five crew members on board both trains. Due to this, the two railroads implemented new safety features called "Precision Train Control" (an ancestor to the later federally mandated,
Positive Train Control Positive train control (PTC) is a family of automatic train protection systems deployed in the United States. Most of the United States' national rail network mileage has a form of PTC. These systems are generally designed to check that trains a ...
) on 750 miles (1200 km) of UP and BN track.


1994

* January 13 - United States - In
Pasco County, Florida Pasco County is a County (United States), county located on the west central coast in the U.S. state of Florida. As of 2024, the population of the county is 656,851, making it the tenth-most populous county in the state. Its county seat is Dade ...
, A Barnum & Bailey
circus train A circus train is a method of travel for circus troupes. One of the larger users of circus trains was the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus (RBBX), a famous American circus formed when the Ringling Brothers Circus purchased the ...
carrying circus members derailed due to a track failure and caught fire, killing two people. * February 8 -
Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States Georgia may also refer to: People and fictional characters * Georgia (name), a list of pe ...
- A head-on collision between two passenger trains kills three engine drivers. * March 8 – ''Switzerland'' – a freight train derailed at
Zurich Zurich (; ) is the list of cities in Switzerland, largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zurich. It is in north-central Switzerland, at the northwestern tip of Lake Zurich. , the municipality had 448,664 inhabitants. The ...
. A tank wagon carrying petrol exploded, injuring three people. * March 9 – ''South Africa'' – A commuter train derailed in a suburb of
Durban Durban ( ; , from meaning "bay, lagoon") is the third-most populous city in South Africa, after Johannesburg and Cape Town, and the largest city in the Provinces of South Africa, province of KwaZulu-Natal. Situated on the east coast of South ...
,
KwaZulu-Natal KwaZulu-Natal (, also referred to as KZN) is a Provinces of South Africa, province of South Africa that was created in 1994 when the government merged the Zulu people, Zulu bantustan of KwaZulu ("Place of the Zulu" in Zulu language, Zulu) and ...
, killing at least 63 people and injuring 370 in one of South Africa's deadliest rail disasters. * March 21 – ''Switzerland'' – The side of a passenger train from
Brig A brig is a type of sailing vessel defined by its rig: two masts which are both square rig, square-rigged. Brigs originated in the second half of the 18th century and were a common type of smaller merchant vessel or warship from then until the l ...
to
Romanshorn Romanshorn is a Municipalities of Switzerland, municipality in the district of Arbon (district), Arbon in the Cantons of Switzerland, canton of Thurgau in Switzerland. History Romanshorn was probably settled in the 7th century, and is first menti ...
was ripped out by a crane wagon at Däniken, killing nine people. * May 16 – ''United States'' – Amtrak's Silver Meteor passenger train, bound from New York to Florida, derailed near
Selma, North Carolina Selma is a town in Johnston County, North Carolina, United States. In 2010, its population was 6,073, and as of 2018 the estimated population was 6,913. Selma is part of the Raleigh-Durham-Cary combined statistical area. The area has a populatio ...
after hitting a cargo container jutting out from a passing freight. The Amtrak engineer was killed and nearly 100 passengers were injured. * June 25 – ''United Kingdom'' – Greenock rail crash, Scotland: Two people were killed after a train struck concrete blocks placed on the track by vandals. * August 3 – ''United States'' – The Lake Shore Limited, operated by
Amtrak The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, Trade name, doing business as Amtrak (; ), is the national Passenger train, passenger railroad company of the United States. It operates intercity rail service in 46 of the 48 contiguous United Stat ...
, derailed on
Conrail Conrail , formally the Consolidated Rail Corporation, was the primary Class I railroad in the Northeastern United States between 1976 and 1999. The trade name Conrail is a portmanteau based on the company's legal name. It continues to do busine ...
tracks in
Batavia, New York Batavia is a city in and the county seat of Genesee County, New York, United States. It is located near the center of the county, surrounded by the Town of Batavia, which is a separate municipality. Batavia's population, as of the 2020 census, ...
. 108 passengers and 10 crew members were injured. Cars 8–12 on the consist fell down an embankment. * September 22 – ''Angola'' –
1994 Tolunda rail disaster The 1994 Tolunda rail disaster happened near Tolunda, in the Namibe Province, Angola on 22 September 1994. A freight train of the Benguela railway derailed due to malfunctioning brakes and crashed into a 10 metres deep ravine. 300 people died an ...
– Faulty brakes cause the derailment of a train in Tolunda. The train plunged into a ravine, killing 300 people. * September 29 – ''Germany'' – Two passenger trains collided head-on near
Bad Bramstedt Bad Bramstedt () is a municipality in the district of Segeberg, in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. It is situated approximately 40 km north of Hamburg. It is famous for its statue of Roland and its rheumatism clinic. Geography and transport Bad ...
, killing six people and injuring 67. * October 15 – ''United Kingdom'' – Cowden rail crash – Two trains collided head-on in Cowden, Kent, after a driver ran through a red signal; killing five people and injuring 12. * November 20 – ''Canada'' –
VIA Rail Via Rail Canada Inc. (), operating as Via Rail or Via (stylized as VIA Rail), is a Canadian Crown corporation that operates intercity passenger rail service in Canada. As of December 2023, Via Rail operates 406 trains per week across eight ...
train No. 66, travelling eastward at approximately 155 km/h (96 mph), struck a piece of rail intentionally placed on the track at the CN North America (CN) Kingston Subdivision, in
Brighton, Ontario Brighton is a town in Northumberland County, Ontario, Northumberland County, Ontario, Canada, approximately east of Toronto and west of Kingston, Ontario, Kingston. It is traversed by both Ontario Highway 401, Highway 401 and the former Ontario ...
. The piece of rail punctured a locomotive fuel tank and severed electrical power cables creating electrical arcing which ignited the leaking fuel. A fire erupted and the trailing portion of the locomotive and the first two-passenger cars behind the locomotive became engulfed in flames. 46 passengers were injured. * December 2 – ''Hungary'' – Szajol – A train going to Budapest derailed after passing through a false switch at 110 km/h. It collided with a station building, killing 31 people and injuring 52. It was the second-worst rail incident in post-World War II Hungary. * December 14 – ''United States'' - ''San Bernardino, California'' – A Santa Fe intermodal freight train rear-ended a parked Union Pacific coal train at the Cajon Pass due to a kink in the air hose that triggered the brakes, injuring two crewmembers who were forced to jump from their runaway train going 50 mph (80 km/h).


1995

* January 31 – ''United Kingdom'' – 1995 Ais Gill rail accident: A diesel multiple unit ran into a landslip at Ais Gill,
Cumbria Cumbria ( ) is a ceremonial county in North West England. It borders the Scottish council areas of Dumfries and Galloway and Scottish Borders to the north, Northumberland and County Durham to the east, North Yorkshire to the south-east, Lancash ...
and was derailed. Another diesel multiple unit then collided with it. One person was killed and 30 were injured. * May 10 – ''South Africa'' – Vaal Reefs Tragedy: A mine locomotive operating below ground fell into an elevator shaft. It struck the "detaching hook", separating the cable from the double-deck elevator car, which ffell a further . All 104 miners on board were killed. It is history's worst elevator accident. * May 26 – ''United States'' – Two SB
CSX CSX Transportation , known colloquially as simply CSX, is a Railroad classes, Class I freight railroad company operating in the Eastern United States and the Canadian provinces of Ontario and Quebec. Operating about 21,000 route miles () of trac ...
freights collided near
Flomaton, Alabama Flomaton is a town in Escambia County, Alabama, United States. At the 2010 census the town's population was 1,440. It is located next to the Alabama / Florida state line. History Flomaton was incorporated as a town in 1908, having been settl ...
, on the former
Louisville and Nashville Railroad The Louisville and Nashville Railroad , commonly called the L&N, was a Class I railroad that operated freight and passenger services in the southeast United States. Chartered by the Commonwealth of Kentucky in 1850, the road grew into one of ...
, forcing the evacuation of residents. One of the derailed tank cars leaked
vinyl chloride Vinyl chloride is an organochloride with the formula H2C =CHCl. It is also called vinyl chloride monomer (VCM) or chloroethene. It is an important industrial chemical chiefly used to produce the polymer polyvinyl chloride (PVC). Vinyl chloride is a ...
. * June 16 – ''United States'' – Canadian Pacific 1278 boiler explosion: Gardners, Pennsylvania. A Gettysburg Railroad
steam locomotive A steam locomotive is a locomotive that provides the force to move itself and other vehicles by means of the expansion of steam. It is fuelled by burning combustible material (usually coal, Fuel oil, oil or, rarely, Wood fuel, wood) to heat ...
, Canadian Pacific 4-6-2 Number 1278, suffered a catastrophic
boiler explosion A boiler explosion is a catastrophic failure of a boiler. There are two types of boiler explosions. One type is a failure of the pressure parts of the steam and water sides. There can be many different causes, such as failure of the safety val ...
due to low water, seriously injuring three crew. 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 inci ...
reported that an even more serious explosion had been averted by the fact that the locomotive was fitted with
fusible plug A fusible plug is a threaded cylinder of metal, usually bronze, brass or gunmetal, with a tapered hole drilled completely through its length. This hole is sealed with a metal of low melting point that flows away if a predetermined high temperatur ...
s, a safety feature rarely found in North America but common in Europe. Major new regulation of steam locomotives followed. * June 24 – ''Czech Republic'' – Krouna train accident: Four runaway carriages smashed into a passenger train. 19 people were killed, only four passengers survived. * July 10 – ''United States'' – Canadian Pacific 2317:
Dunmore, Pennsylvania Dunmore is a borough in Lackawanna County, Pennsylvania, United States, adjoining Scranton. It is part of Northeastern Pennsylvania and was settled in 1835 and incorporated in 1862. Extensive anthracite coal, brick, stone, and silk interests ha ...
. A Steamtown-owned steam locomotive, Canadian Pacific 4-6-2 Number 2317, en route from Moscow to Scranton struck and killed two young boys who were trying to pry one of their jammed
ATVs ATV may refer to: Broadcasting * Amateur television *Analog television Television broadcaster * Andorra Televisió * Anguilla Television * Ayna TV, Afghanistan * ATV (Armenia) * ATV (Aruba), NBC affiliate * ATV (Australian TV station), Melbo ...
from the tracks. * July 11 - ''United Kingdom'' - Largs, Scotland - A train collided with a buffer and hit a ticket office, injuring four people. *August 11 – ''Canada'' –
1995 Russell Hill subway accident The 1995 Russell Hill subway accident was a train crash that occurred in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, on Line 1 Yonge–University of the Toronto subway on August 11, 1995. Three people were killed and 30 were taken to hospital with injuries when o ...
, Toronto: A subway train collided with the stationary train ahead after a driver misinterpreted a signal and the automatic train stop failed. Three people were killed, and 30 injured. * August 20 – ''India'' – Firozabad rail disaster. A passenger train collided with another train that had stopped after it had run over a cow in
Firozabad Firozabad () is a city near Agra in Firozabad district in the state of Uttar Pradesh in India. It is the centre of India's glassmaking industry and is known for the quality of the bangles and glassware produced here. During the reign of Akba ...
, killing 358 people. * October 9 – ''United States'' – Palo Verde, Arizona Derailment,
Palo Verde, Arizona Palo Verde is a small Unincorporated area, populated place in Maricopa County, Arizona, Maricopa County, Arizona, United States. It is located about west of Phoenix, Arizona, Phoenix, and southwest of downtown Buckeye, Arizona, Buckeye on Histor ...
: Unidentified saboteurs shifted a rail out of alignment after attaching a jumper circuit, keeping the signalling circuit closed. Amtrak's ''
Sunset Limited The ''Sunset Limited'' is a long-distance passenger train run by Amtrak, operating on a route between New Orleans and Los Angeles. Major stops include Houston, San Antonio and El Paso in Texas, as well as Tucson, Arizona. Opening in 1894 thr ...
'' subsequently derailed, plunging four cars into a dry riverbed killing one and injuring 78 people, 12 seriously. * October 24 - ''Indonesia'' - In Kadipaten,
Tasikmalaya Tasikmalaya (also known as Tasik) is a landlocked city in West Java, Indonesia. The city is sometimes dubbed ''kota santri'' (city of religious learners) or "the City of a Thousand Pesantrens" for its abundance of Islamic boarding schools. Locat ...
, two merged trains loses brake, crashed and fell into a ravine in the Trowek area (now around Cirahayu station), killing dozens and injuring hundreds more. * October 25 – ''United States'' – 1995 Fox River Grove bus–train collision: A school bus caught between a railroad crossing and a red traffic light is hit by a
Metra Metra is the primary commuter rail system in the Chicago metropolitan area serving the city of Chicago and its surrounding suburbs via the Union Pacific Railroad, BNSF Railway, and other railroads. The system operates 243 train station, stati ...
commuter train, killing seven students. * October 28 – ''
Azerbaijan Azerbaijan, officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, is a Boundaries between the continents, transcontinental and landlocked country at the boundary of West Asia and Eastern Europe. It is a part of the South Caucasus region and is bounded by ...
'' –
1995 Baku Metro fire On 28 October 1995, a fire broke out in the subway system of Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan, between the stations Ulduz and Nariman Narimanov. According to official figures, the fire killed 289 people: 286 passengers (including 28 children) an ...
: A
Baku Metro Baku Metro () is a rapid transit system serving Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan. First opened on 6 November 1967 when Azerbaijan was part of the Soviet Union, its features are typical of former Soviet Union, Soviet systems, including very deep ...
subway train caught fire between Ulduz and Nariman Narimanov stations during evening rush hour. 289 people were killed and 265 injured. An electrical fault was blamed, but sabotage was not ruled out. The accident remains the deadliest subway disaster to date. * December 12 -
Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...
- Garmisch-Partenkirchen train collision'', In
Garmisch Garmisch-Partenkirchen (; ) is an Alpine ski town in Bavaria, southern Germany. It is the seat of government of the district of Garmisch-Partenkirchen (abbreviated ''GAP''), in the Oberbayern region, which borders Austria. Nearby is Ger ...
, a Obb Train crashed into a DB Train after skipping a red light, killing one person and injuring 47. * December 21 – ''Egypt'' – A Cairo-Beni Sueif passenger train and Cairo-
Aswan Aswan (, also ; ) is a city in Southern Egypt, and is the capital of the Aswan Governorate. Aswan is a busy market and tourist centre located just north of the Aswan Dam on the east bank of the Nile at the first cataract. The modern city ha ...
passenger train collided in dense fog in Badrasheen railroad station, killing 75 people and injuring 150. * December 25 – ''Spain'' –
Jaén Jaén may refer to: Places Peru *Jaén Province, Peru, a province in Cajamarca Region, Peru ** Jaén District, one of twelve districts of the province Jaén in Peru ***Jaén, Peru, a city in Peru, capital of the Jaén Province Philippines * Jaen ...
: An express from Barcelona to Seville via Málaga derailed at a bridge over the deep
Despeñaperros Despeñaperros (literally, '' liff wheredogs plunge'') is a gorge or canyon carved out by the Despeñaperros river. It is located in the municipality of Santa Elena in the northern portion of the province of Jaén, Spain. The area was declared ...
canyon. The locomotive came to rest in a near-vertical position leaning against the bridge, but remained coupled to the first car, suspending the car's forward end above the bridge. The two enginemen were killed.


1996

* January 6 – ''United States'' –
Shady Grove Metrorail station Shady Grove station is a Washington Metro station in Redland, Montgomery County, Maryland, United States. The station opened on December 15, 1984 as part of a four-stop extension of the Red Line from station to Shady Grove. The station is op ...
, Derwood,
Maryland Maryland ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It borders the states of Virginia to its south, West Virginia to its west, Pennsylvania to its north, and Delaware to its east ...
: A
Washington Metro The Washington Metro, often abbreviated as the Metro and formally the Metrorail, is a rapid transit system serving the Washington metropolitan area of the United States. It is administered by the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority ...
train overran the station platform at Shady Grove and collided with a stored train. The operator of the overrunning train was killed. * January 14 - ''Australia'' -
Hines Hill train collision The Hines Hill train collision occurred on the Eastern Goldfields Railway on 14 January 1996 at Hines Hill, Western Australia. Two trains entered a passing loop simultaneously in opposing directions, although signals at the end of the passing lo ...
: two trains entered a passing loop from opposite directions after one of them passed a signal at danger. The engineer of one of the trains, along with one passenger, were killed. * February 1 – ''United States'' –
Cajon Pass Cajon Pass (; Spanish: ''Puerto del Cajón'' or ''Paso del Cajón'') is a mountain pass between the San Bernardino Mountains to the east and the San Gabriel Mountains to the west in Southern California. Created by the movements of the San Andr ...
,
San Bernardino County San Bernardino County ( ), officially the County of San Bernardino and sometimes abbreviated as S.B. County, is a county located in the southern portion of the U.S. state of California, and is located within the Inland Empire area. As of th ...
,
California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...
: An
AT&SF The Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway , often referred to as the Santa Fe or AT&SF, was one of the largest Class 1 railroads in the United States between 1859 and 1996. The Santa Fe was a pioneer in intermodal freight transport; at variou ...
freight train carrying hazardous materials derailed due to failed brakes in the steep pass, killing two crewmen, injuring the engineer, and shutting down Interstate 15 for several days due to a cloud of noxious fumes. * February 9 - United States -
1996 Secaucus train collision 1996 was designated as: * International Year for the Eradication of Poverty Events January * January 8 – A Zairean cargo plane crashes into a crowded market in the center of the capital city of the Democratic Republic of the Congo ...
: Two
New Jersey Transit New Jersey Transit Corporation, branded as NJ Transit or NJTransit and often shortened to NJT, is a state-owned public transportation system that serves the U.S. state of New Jersey and portions of the states of New York and Pennsylvania. It ...
trains collided in the morning rush killing three people. The cause was later determined to be the
colorblindness Color blindness, color vision deficiency (CVD) or color deficiency is the decreased ability to see color or differences in color. The severity of color blindness ranges from mostly unnoticeable to full absence of color perception. Color bl ...
of one of the engineers. * February 14 - ''United States'' - St. Paul, Minnesota - A
BNSF BNSF Railway is the largest freight railroad in the United States. One of six North American Class I railroads, BNSF has 36,000 employees, of track in 28 states, and over 8,000 locomotives. It has three transcontinental routes that provide ...
freight train slammed into two parked SOO Line locomotives, and a parked
Canadian Pacific The Canadian Pacific Railway () , also known simply as CPR or Canadian Pacific and formerly as CP Rail (1968–1996), is a Canadian Class I railway incorporated in 1881. The railway is owned by Canadian Pacific Kansas City, Canadian Pacific Ka ...
freight train in the St. Paul Railyard due to a kink in the air hose that prevented the brakes from being applied. 44 cars and six locomotives derailed, while nine workers were injured, and an office building was destroyed. * February 16 – ''United States'' – 1996 Maryland train collision: A
MARC Marc or MARC may refer to: People * Marc (given name), people with the first name * Marc (surname), people with the family name Acronyms * MARC standards, a data format used for library cataloging, * MARC Train, a regional commuter rail system ...
commuter train bound for
Washington Union Station Washington Union Station, known locally as Union Station, is a major train station, transportation hub, and leisure destination in Washington, D.C. Designed by Daniel Burnham and opened in 1907, it is Amtrak's second-busiest station and North ...
, collided with outbound
Amtrak The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, Trade name, doing business as Amtrak (; ), is the national Passenger train, passenger railroad company of the United States. It operates intercity rail service in 46 of the 48 contiguous United Stat ...
train no. 29, the westbound ''Capitol Limited'' after the MARC crew apparently forgot an approach signal and failed to reduce speed, killings three crew and eight passengers aboard the MARC train. Eight of the dead were killed by smoke and flames possibly ignited by oil pot switch heaters. This led to the
FRA Fra is a title of a friar. Fra or FRA may also refer to: Codes * fra, the ISO 639-2 code for the French language * FRA, the ISO 3166-1 alpha-3 code for France * FRA, the IOC country code for France at the Olympics * Framingham station, Amtra ...
instituting the
Delay in Block Rule Delay or DeLay may refer to: People * B. H. DeLay (1891–1923), American aviator and movie stunt pilot * Dorothy DeLay (1917–2002), American violin instructor * Florence Delay (born 1941), French academician and actor * Jan Delay, stage name ...
, and also was a major impetus for the Passenger Equipment Safety Standards regulation (49 CFR Part 238). * March 4 – ''United States'' – Weyauwega, Wisconsin, derailment: A broken switch derailed a Wisconsin Central train carrying
liquefied petroleum gas Liquefied petroleum gas, also referred to as liquid petroleum gas (LPG or LP gas), is a fuel gas which contains a flammable mixture of hydrocarbon gases, specifically propane, Butane, ''n''-butane and isobutane. It can also contain some ...
and
propane Propane () is a three-carbon chain alkane with the molecular formula . It is a gas at standard temperature and pressure, but becomes liquid when compressed for transportation and storage. A by-product of natural gas processing and petroleum ref ...
. The town of Weyauwega, Wisconsin, was evacuated as the fire burns for most of the 18-day evacuation. * March 8 – ''United Kingdom'' – 1996 Stafford rail crash: A freight train derailed due to an axle failure and was then struck by a
Travelling Post Office A Travelling Post Office (TPO) was a type of mail train used in Great Britain and Republic of Ireland, Ireland where the post was sorted en route, used from 1830 to 1996, with non-TPO mail trains ending in 2024. The TPO can be traced back to ...
train, killing one person and injuring 22. * April 18 – ''India'' –
Gorakhpur Gorakhpur is a city in the List of state and union territory capitals in India, Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, along the banks of the West Rapti River, Rapti river in the Purvanchal , Purvanchal region. It is situated 272 kilometres east of ...
– A Gonda passenger train crashed into a stationary freight train at Domingarh station, killing at least 60.. Emergency & Disaster – Management Inc. * April 21 – ''Finland'' –
Jokela rail accident The Jokela rail accident occurred on 21 April 1996, at 07:08 local time (04:08 UTC) in Tuusula, Finland, approximately north of Helsinki. Four people were killed and 75 injured when express train P82 from Oulu, bound for Helsinki, derailed in h ...
: A passenger train operating in heavy fog derailed at
Jokela Jokela () is one of the three administrative centers in the municipalities of Finland, Finnish municipality Tuusula. It has a population of around 6,000 residents. The Jokela School Centre and the Jokela railway station serve the community. Many r ...
after overspeeding through a slow-speed turnout. The locomotive driver and three passengers were killed, and 75 were injured. * July 2 – ''Ukraine'' –
1996 Dniprodzerzhynsk tram accident On 2 July 1996, an overcrowded tram derailed during the evening rush hour in Dniprodzerzhynsk (now Kamianske), Ukraine, and crashed into a concrete wall. An investigation by the local railway department discovered that the brakes on the tram car f ...
: An overcrowded tram car derailed and crashed through a concrete wall after its brakes failed while going down a steep hill, killing 34 people and injuring over 100. * August 8 – ''United Kingdom'' – Watford rail crash: An
electric multiple unit An electric multiple unit or EMU is a multiple-unit train consisting of self-propelled carriages using electricity as the motive power. An EMU requires no separate locomotive, as electric traction motors are incorporated within one or a number o ...
overran a signal at and stopped foul of a junction before being hit head-on by an electric multiple unit, killing one person and injuring 69. * September 16 – ''Switzerland'' – A passenger train collided with a locomotive at
Courfaivre Courfaivre is a former municipalities of Switzerland, municipality in the district of Delémont (district), Delémont in the Cantons of Switzerland, canton of Jura (canton), Jura in Switzerland. On 1 January 2013 the former municipalities of Basse ...
after passing a signal at danger, injuring 30 people. * September 26 – ''Russia'' – A level crossing collision of a diesel locomotive into a school bus between
Bataysk Bataysk () is a city in Rostov Oblast, Russia, located southwest of Rostov-on-Don. Population: History It was founded in 1769, and was granted town status in 1938. The reconstructed Church of the Ascension was built between 1990 and 2006. The ...
and
Salsk Salsk () is a town and the administrative center of Salsky District in Rostov Oblast, Russia, located on the Sredny Yegorlyk River ( Don's basin), southeast of Rostov-on-Don, the administrative center of the oblast. Population: 56,832 (2020), ...
in
Rostov Oblast Rostov Oblast ( rus, Росто́вская о́бласть, r=Rostovskaya oblastʹ, p=rɐˈstofskəjə ˈobləsʲtʲ) is a federal subjects of Russia, federal subject of Russia (an oblast), located in the Southern Federal District. The oblast ...
killed 19 people, including 18 children. * November 18 – ''France'' / ''United Kingdom'' –
1996 Channel Tunnel fire The Channel Tunnel fire of 18 November 1996 occurred on a train carrying Heavy Goods Vehicles (HGVs) and their drivers through the Channel Tunnel from France to the United Kingdom. The fire was seen on the train as it entered the tunnel and, in ...
: A fire occurred on board a
Eurotunnel Shuttle LeShuttle (formerly Eurotunnel Le Shuttle and also known as The Shuttle) is a railway shuttle service between Calais in France and Folkestone in the United Kingdom. It conveys road vehicles (including cars, bicycles and motorcycles) and passeng ...
train inside the
Channel Tunnel The Channel Tunnel (), sometimes referred to by the Portmanteau, portmanteau Chunnel, is a undersea railway tunnel, opened in 1994, that connects Folkestone (Kent, England) with Coquelles (Pas-de-Calais, France) beneath the English Channel at ...
, injuring 34 people.


1997

* January 12 – ''Italy'' – A
Pendolino Pendolino (from Italian language, Italian "pendulum", and ''-ino,'' a diminutive suffix) is an Italian family of high-speed tilting trains (and non-tilting) used in Italy, Spain, Germany, Poland, Portugal, Slovenia, Finland, the Czech Republic, ...
train derailed due to excessive speed just before
Piacenza Piacenza (; ; ) is a city and (municipality) in the Emilia-Romagna region of Northern Italy, and the capital of the province of Piacenza, eponymous province. As of 2022, Piacenza is the ninth largest city in the region by population, with more ...
station, killing eight people and injuring 29 others. * March 3 – ''Pakistan'' – Five coaches of a
Karachi Karachi is the capital city of the Administrative units of Pakistan, province of Sindh, Pakistan. It is the List of cities in Pakistan by population, largest city in Pakistan and 12th List of largest cities, largest in the world, with a popul ...
-bound train from
Peshawar Peshawar is the capital and List of cities in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa by population, largest city of the Administrative units of Pakistan, Pakistani province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. It is the sixth most populous city of Pakistan, with a district p ...
overturned near
Khanewal Khanewal is a city and the capital of Khanewal District in Punjab, Pakistan. Khanewal also contains Pakistan's third largest railway junction. It is the 36th largest city of Pakistan by population. Etymology According to one theory, Khanewal ...
after the train's brakes failed and it was driven onto a runaway track, killing 110 people and injuring 150. * July 28 – ''India'' – 12 people died in a collision at
Faridabad Faridabad () is the most populous List of cities in Haryana by population, city near NCT of Delhi in the Indian state of Haryana and a part of National Capital Region (India), Delhi National Capital Region. It is one of the major satellite citie ...
in the
Delhi Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, but spread chiefly to the west, or beyond its Bank (geography ...
suburbs. * August 9 - ''United States'' - Amtrak Southwest Chief (Train Number 4) derailed on an old wooden bridge due to a severe thunderstorms, injuring 173 people. * August 28 –
China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...
Jilin ) , image_skyline = Changbaishan Tianchi from western rim.jpg , image_alt = , image_caption = View of Heaven Lake , image_map = Jilin in China (+all claims hatched).svg , mapsize = 275px , map_al ...
,
Changchun Changchun is the capital and largest city of Jilin, Jilin Province, China, on the Songliao Plain. Changchun is administered as a , comprising seven districts, one county and three county-level cities. At the 2020 census of China, Changchun ha ...
–A passenger train from
Harbin railway station Harbin railway station () is a railway station on the Jingha railway, Binsui Railway, Labin Railway, Binbei Railway and Binzhou Railway. The station is in Nangang District, Harbin, Heilongjiang, China. History Songhuajiang station () was opened ...
to
Harbin railway station Harbin railway station () is a railway station on the Jingha railway, Binsui Railway, Labin Railway, Binbei Railway and Binzhou Railway. The station is in Nangang District, Harbin, Heilongjiang, China. History Songhuajiang station () was opened ...
collided with a freight train and derailed, killing four people and injuring nine. * September 8 - ''France'' - A passenger train collided with a fuel tanker on a level crossing at Port-Sainte-Foy, Dordogne, killing 13 people and injuring over 40. This remains France's worst ever level crossing accident. * September 19 – ''United Kingdom'' –
Southall rail crash The Southall rail crash occurred on 19 September 1997, on the Great Western Main Line at Southall, West London. An InterCity 125 high speed passenger train (HST) failed to slow down in response to warning signals and collided with a freight tra ...
, London: An inter-city train failed to stop at a red signal due to driver distraction and collided with a freight train crossing its path, killing seven people and injuring 139. * November 8 – ''Ireland'' – Westport train derailment: An Iarnród Eireann train travelling between
Dublin Heuston Heuston Station, ( ; ; formerly Kingsbridge Station) also known as Dublin Heuston, is one of Dublin's largest railway stations and links the capital with the south, southwest and west of Ireland. It is operated by Iarnród Éireann (IÉ), ...
and Westport derailed 2 miles west of
Knockcroghery Knockcroghery () is a village and townland in County Roscommon, Ireland. It is located on the N61 road (Ireland), N61 road between Athlone and Roscommon, Roscommon town, near Lough Ree on the River Shannon. The townland of Knockcroghery is in t ...
,
County Roscommon County Roscommon () is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is part of the province of Connacht and the Northern and Western Region. It is the List of Irish counties by area, 11th largest Irish county by area and Li ...
due to a broken rail that had been missed by a routine
inspection An inspection is, most generally, an organized examination or formal evaluation exercise. In engineering activities inspection involves the measurements, tests, and gauges applied to certain characteristics in regard to an object or activity. ...
. The train was travelling at between 50 and 60 miles per hour when it derailed at a
level crossing A level crossing is an intersection where a railway line crosses a road, Trail, path, or (in rare situations) airport runway, at the same level, as opposed to the railway line or the road etc. crossing over or under using an Overpass#Railway, o ...
. Four people were detained in hospital, none seriously injured. * November 13 – ''Switzerland'' – Two passenger trains collided at
Appenzell Appenzell () was a cantons of Switzerland, canton in the northeast of Switzerland, and entirely surrounded by the canton of St. Gallen, in existence from 1403 to 1597. Appenzell became independent of the Abbey of Saint Gall in 1403 and entered ...
after one of them passed a signal at danger, injuring 17 people. * December 9 – ''Germany'' –
Hanover Hanover ( ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the States of Germany, German state of Lower Saxony. Its population of 535,932 (2021) makes it the List of cities in Germany by population, 13th-largest city in Germany as well as the fourth-l ...
: A regional train collided with a freight train carrying petrol. Five of the wrecked tankers ignited and exploded. More than 90 people were injured.


1998

* February 15 – ''
Cameroon Cameroon, officially the Republic of Cameroon, is a country in Central Africa. It shares boundaries with Nigeria to the west and north, Chad to the northeast, the Central African Republic to the east, and Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, and the R ...
'' –
Yaoundé train explosion The Yaoundé train explosion was the catastrophic fire following the derailment and collision of two tanker trains hauling crude oil through the capital of Cameroon, Yaoundé. At least 200 people were killed in the accident, which happened on Febru ...
: Spilt fuel oil from a tanker train crash ignited and exploded, killing more than 100 people. * March 6 – ''Finland'' –
Jyväskylä rail accident The Jyväskylä derailment occurred on 6 March 1998 in Jyväskylä, Finland, when the VR Class Sr1, Sr1-driven express train P105 from Turku railway station, Turku bound for Joensuu railway station, Joensuu via Pieksämäki railway station, Pieks ...
: An express passenger train derailed at
Jyväskylä Jyväskylä () is a city in Finland and the regional capital of Central Finland. It is located in the Finnish Lakeland. The population of Jyväskylä is approximately , while the Jyväskylä sub-region, sub-region has a population of approximately ...
after overspeeding while passing over a slow-speed turnout. The locomotive driver and nine passengers were killed, 94 people were injured. * April 4 – ''India'' – Fatuha train crash: At least 11 people died near
Patna Patna (; , ISO 15919, ISO: ''Paṭanā''), historically known as Pataliputra, Pāṭaliputra, is the List of state and union territory capitals in India, capital and largest city of the state of Bihar in India. According to the United Nations, ...
(near Fatuha station) on the Howrah-Delhi main line after the Howrah-Danapur Express derailed. * June 3 – ''Germany'' –
Eschede train disaster On 3 June 1998, part of an ICE 1 train on the Hanover–Hamburg railway near Eschede in Lower Saxony, Germany derailed and crashed into an overpass that crossed the railroad, which then collapsed onto the train. 101 people were killed and a ...
: Part of a high-speed
ICE Ice is water that is frozen into a solid state, typically forming at or below temperatures of 0 ° C, 32 ° F, or 273.15 K. It occurs naturally on Earth, on other planets, in Oort cloud objects, and as interstellar ice. As a naturally oc ...
train derailed at
Eschede Eschede () is a municipality in the district of Celle, in Lower Saxony, Germany. Situated approximately 15 km (10 miles) northeast of Celle, Eschede lies at the border of the Südheide Nature Park, a protected area of large forests and heat ...
and strikes a bridge due to a faulty wheel rim. The bridge collapsed as the third car hit its pylons, the remaining cars and the rear power unit jackknifed into the pile. The first three carriages were separated from each other and came to a halt at
Eschede railway station Eschede () is a municipality in the district of Celle, in Lower Saxony, Germany. Situated approximately 15 km (10 miles) northeast of Celle, Eschede lies at the border of the Südheide Nature Park, a protected area of large forests and heath ...
while the undamaged power car continued for another two kilometres until its brakes were automatically applied. 101 people were killed in the world's worst ever high-speed rail disaster. * October 18 – ''Egypt'' – An
Alexandria Alexandria ( ; ) is the List of cities and towns in Egypt#Largest cities, second largest city in Egypt and the List of coastal settlements of the Mediterranean Sea, largest city on the Mediterranean coast. It lies at the western edge of the Nile ...
Cairo Cairo ( ; , ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Egypt and the Cairo Governorate, being home to more than 10 million people. It is also part of the List of urban agglomerations in Africa, largest urban agglomeration in Africa, L ...
passenger train crashed at Kafr el-Dawar station,
Nile Delta The Nile Delta (, or simply , ) is the River delta, delta formed in Lower Egypt where the Nile River spreads out and drains into the Mediterranean Sea. It is one of the world's larger deltas—from Alexandria in the west to Port Said in the eas ...
, after its driver exceeded the speed limit, killing 47 people and injuring 104=. * November 26 – ''India'' – Khanna rail disaster: The
Sealdah Sealdah is a neighbourhood of Central Kolkata in Kolkata district in the Indian state of West Bengal. Etymology Jackals (''sheal'' in Bengali) howled around Sealdah. Antiquarians identify it as Shrigaldwipa (Jackal Island). Nearby Beliaghata ...
express rammed into three cars of derailed carriages of Golden Temple mail bound for
Amritsar Amritsar, also known as Ambarsar, is the second-List of cities in Punjab, India by population, largest city in the India, Indian state of Punjab, India, Punjab, after Ludhiana. Located in the Majha region, it is a major cultural, transportatio ...
at Khanna station, on the outskirts of
Ludhiana Ludhiana () is the most populous Cities in India, city in the Indian state of Punjab, India, Punjab.164.100.161.224 http://164.100.161.224 › filesPDF Ludhiana State: Punjab Business & Industrial Centre, Tier 2 1 ... The city has an estima ...
,
Punjab Punjab (; ; also romanised as Panjāb or Panj-Āb) is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia. It is located in the northwestern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising areas of modern-day eastern Pakistan and no ...
, at least 212 people were killed.


1999

* March 15 – ''United States'' –
1999 Bourbonnais, Illinois, train crash On March 15, 1999, Amtrak's southbound '' City of New Orleans'' passenger train collided with a semi-trailer truck in the village of Bourbonnais, Illinois, United States. Most of the train derailed, killing eleven people. A National Transporta ...
: The
Amtrak The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, Trade name, doing business as Amtrak (; ), is the national Passenger train, passenger railroad company of the United States. It operates intercity rail service in 46 of the 48 contiguous United Stat ...
''City of New Orleans'', traveling at approximately , slammed into a semi-trailer truck loaded with steel concrete reinforcing bar (rebar) at a
grade crossing A level crossing is an intersection where a railway line crosses a road, path, or (in rare situations) airport runway, at the same level, as opposed to the railway line or the road etc. crossing over or under using an overpass or tunnel. The t ...
and derails. An ensuing fire set one Superliner sleeper car ablaze. Eleven people were killed and over 100 were injured. It was subsequently determined that the truck driver had ignored the grade crossing signals and driven around the lowered gates. * April 12 – ''Germany'' –
1999 Wuppertal Schwebebahn accident The Wuppertal Schwebebahn accident (German language, German: ''Schwebebahnunfall'') took place on 12 April 1999 on a stretch of track near Robert-Daum-Platz station. The accident, involving car number 4 from the WSW GTW 72 series, kille ...
: In
Wuppertal Wuppertal (; ) is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, in western Germany, with a population of 355,000. Wuppertal is the seventh-largest city in North Rhine-Westphalia and List of cities in Germany by population, 17th-largest in Germany. It ...
, workers doing overnight maintenance on the
Schwebebahn Schwebebahn is German language, German for suspension railway and may refer to the following examples in Germany: * ''Schwebebahn Dresden'', the Dresden Suspension Railway in Dresden, Saxony * ''Schwebebahn Wuppertal'', the Wuppertal Suspension Rai ...
forgot to unscrew a metal clamp from the elevated monorail track. The first train in the morning hit it, derailed, and crashed into the river below, killing 5 passengers and injuring 47. * April 23 – ''Canada'' – VIA Rail train No. 74, encountered an unexpected reversed switch, crossed over to the south main track and derailed at Thamesville, Ontario. The derailed train collided with stationary rail cars on an adjacent yard track and all four passenger cars and the locomotive of the passenger train derailed. The two train crew members in the locomotive cab were killed. * August 2 – ''India'' –
Gaisal train disaster The Gaisal train collision occurred on 2 August 1999, when two trains carrying about 2,500 people collided at the remote station of Gaisal in West Bengal, India. Owing to a signalling error, both trains were using the same track on a day when ...
: Two express trains collided head-on, killing more than 285 people. * August 18 - Australia - ‘’’
Zanthus train collision The Zanthus train collision occurred at a crossing loop on the Trans-Australian Railway between Perth and Sydney on 18 August 1999. It is located east northeast of Perth and east of Kalgoorlie in Western Australia, on the Nullarbor Plain. I ...
’’’, In Zanthus, Western Australia, an
Indian Pacific The ''Indian Pacific'' is a weekly experiential tourism-oriented passenger train service that runs in Australia's east–west rail corridor between Sydney, on the shore of the Pacific Ocean, and Perth, on the shore of the Indian Ocean – ...
Train crashed into an Nrc Train and derailed, injuring 21 people. * October 5 – ''United Kingdom'' –
Ladbroke Grove rail crash The Ladbroke Grove rail crash (also known as the Paddington rail crash) was a rail accident which occurred on 5 October 1999 at Ladbroke Grove in London, England, when a Thames Trains-operated passenger train Signal passed at danger, passed a s ...
: A high-speed head-on collision between two trains occurred due to a signal passed at danger. The fuel tanks of one of the trains were destroyed and the contents were ignited by overhead power lines, causing a fireball, killing 31 people and injuring more than 520. * November 1 – ''Switzerland'' – Two trains collided in
Bern Bern (), or Berne (), ; ; ; . is the ''de facto'' Capital city, capital of Switzerland, referred to as the "federal city".; ; ; . According to the Swiss constitution, the Swiss Confederation intentionally has no "capital", but Bern has gov ...
after one of them passed a signal at danger, killing two people. * December 3 – ''Australia'' –
Glenbrook rail accident The Glenbrook rail accident occurred on 2 December 1999 at 8:22 am on a curve east of Glenbrook railway station on the CityRail network between Glenbrook and Lapstone, in the Blue Mountains of New South Wales, Australia. Seven passengers w ...
,
New South Wales New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a States and territories of Australia, state on the Eastern states of Australia, east coast of :Australia. It borders Queensland to the north, Victoria (state), Victoria to the south, and South ...
: Stop and Proceed rule at red signal applied with insufficient care (too much speed), killing seven. * December 30 – ''Canada'' –
Mont-Saint-Hilaire Mont-Saint-Hilaire () is a suburb of Montreal on the South Shore of southeastern Quebec, Canada, on the Richelieu River in the Regional County Municipality of La Vallée-du-Richelieu. The population as of the Canada 2021 Census was 18,859. T ...
,
Quebec Quebec is Canada's List of Canadian provinces and territories by area, largest province by area. Located in Central Canada, the province shares borders with the provinces of Ontario to the west, Newfoundland and Labrador to the northeast, ...
: Several tank cars filled with gasoline and heating oil from the CN freight train 703 travelling westward derailed as it was passing the CN freight train 306, travelling in the opposite direction on a parallel track. Train 306 hit the derailed cars, which exploded on impact, killing the engineer and the conductor of the 306 and starting a fire which burned 2.7 million liters of oil and forced the evacuation of 350 families within a 2-kilometer radius over the next four days.Rail Reports – 1999 – R99H0010
. Transport Safety Board of Canada.


See also

*
List of road accidents The following is a list of articles that contain a lists of traffic collisions, or list of people who died in traffic collisions. Lists of traffic collisions * List of traffic collisions (before 2000) * List of traffic collisions (2000–present) ...
– includes
level crossing A level crossing is an intersection where a railway line crosses a road, Trail, path, or (in rare situations) airport runway, at the same level, as opposed to the railway line or the road etc. crossing over or under using an Overpass#Railway, o ...
accidents. *
List of British rail accidents This lists significant accidents involving railway rolling stock, including crashes, fires and incidents of crew being overcome by locomotive emissions. Other railway-related incidents such as the King's Cross fire of 1987 or the 7 July 2005 Lond ...
* List of Russian rail accidents * Years in rail transport


References


Sources

* * * * *


External links


Railroad train wrecks 1907–2007
{{DEFAULTSORT:List Of Rail Accidents (1990-1999) Rail accidents 1990-1999 20th-century railway accidents Rail accidents