- Author
-
National Transportation Safety Board
- Title
- Railroad Accident Report: Penn Central Transportation Company Freight Train Derailment Passenger Train Collision With Hazardous Material Car, Sound View, Connecticut. October 8, 1970.
- Coporate
- National Transportation Safety Board, Washington, DC
- Report
-
NTSB-RAR-72-1,
December 22, 1971,
55 p.
- Keywords
-
railroad accidents
|
accident investigations
|
hazardous materials
|
passenger trains
|
tank cars
|
equipment design
- Identifiers
- derailments; puncture; railroad bridge; locomotive design; caboose design; truck side; component parts testing and retirement; communications joing corridor usage; excursion
- Abstract
- At 8:50 p.m., October 8, 1970, Penn Central Transportaiton Company's freight train derailed near Sound View, Connecticut. Freight cars obstructed track in the path of Penn Central passenger train. The passenger train struck the freight cars, puncturing an LPG tank car designated as "empty." The derailed units of the passenger train passed throus ignited gases from the punctured tank car and crossed a railroad bridge. Train crewmembers and passengers were injured. The Safety Board has determined that the probable cause of the derailment of the freight train was the breakage of a truck side of a car on the freight train which followed a progressive fatigue crack failure. The breakage of the truck side resulted in damage to a turnout, which caused derailment of the following cars. The cause of the collision to the passenger train was the obstruction of track No. 2 by cars of the freight train. The Board concluded industry controls to prevent application of improper car components are inadequate, empty tank cars may be hazardous, and suggested that the industry should incorporate crashworthy concepts, improve communication and equipment design, and controls over maintenance, retirement, and testing of equipment components. The Board requested that bridge standards and joint corridor usage be reviewed.