Roscommon train crash, 1974

[aclass007]

I just came across a few pics of a train crash from 1974. Perhaps others have already seen these, but I hadn't. It looks pretty dramatic......

 

http://historical.glynnsphotography.com/p712197626/h37137F6C#h307bfcd7

[ttc0169]

Loco 125 ran away down the hill into Roscommon station while working the 19:15 Ballina-Northwall goods train and was diverted into the long up siding at the Athlone end of the station where the loco nosedived into the stream after demolishing the buffer stop.

[heirflick]

I just came across a few pics of a train crash from 1974. Perhaps others have already seen these, but I hadn't. It looks pretty dramatic......

 

http://historical.glynnsphotography.com/p712197626/h37137F6C#h307bfcd7

 

great shot Aaclass - any more?

[heirflick]

Loco 125 ran away down the hill into Roscommon station while working the 19:15 Ballina-Northwall goods train and was diverted into the long up siding at the Athlone end of the station where the loco nosedived into the stream after demolishing the buffer stop.

 

was she written off after the smash or could was she repaired?

[Blaine]

Repaired, but never quite the same. Badly damaged by fire some years later and never ran again

[heirflick]

Repaired, but never quite the same. Badly damaged by fire some years later and never ran again

 

did she run mainline after repair or was she confined to pilot duties?

[Dave]

Did the driver survive?

[Eiretrains]

125 did run again, but as others have said, it was never the same and ended up withdrawn following a fire. It sat for some years in Inchicore in its faded livery until cut up in the 90s.

I think the driver had to be cut out from the cab. It was remarked that the sturdiness of the GM designed cab contributed to his miraculous escape, similarly to when a driver crawled out from the cab of B132 after it had flipped on its side in the Clough accident.

Nice view of the BR container and wagons, albeit smashed.

 

Edit: Some nice photos of 055 moving into Hell's Kitchen

http://historical.glynnsphotography.com/p466106870

Edited May 12, 2013 by Eiretrains

[heirflick]

125 did run again, but as others have said, it was never the same and ended up withdrawn following a fire. It sat for some years in Inchicore in its faded livery until cut up in the 90s.

I think the driver had to be cut out from the cab. It was remarked that the sturdiness of the GM designed cab contributed to his miraculous escape, similarly to when a driver crawled out from the cab of B132 after it had flipped on its side in the Clough accident.

Nice view of the BR container and wagons, albeit smashed.

 

Edit: Some nice photos of 055 moving into Hell's Kitchen

http://historical.glynnsphotography.com/p466106870

 

thanks for the info eiretrains. i always thought when you heard the word 'runaway' it ment that nobody was on board to stop the loco, like what happened when a loco ranaway on the driver comming out of the depot in portlaoise and slapped into the buffer at the station!

[aclass007]

great shot Aaclass - any more?

 

There's three shots in that album. It's all that I found. As I said, I only found them by chance......

[josefstadt]

One thing I remember about the aftermath of the crash was that the surrounding fields were littered with empty packaging from footballs which were en route from from a factory in, I think, Ballina (ttc will no doubt know who and where they were). Every child in the Roscommon area must have got a new football that day! I have pictures of the scene somewhere. Must dig them out and post them.

[heirflick]

One thing I remember about the aftermath of the crash was that the surrounding fields were littered with empty packaging from footballs which were en route from from a factory in, I think, Ballina (ttc will no doubt know who and where they were). Every child in the Roscommon area must have got a new football that day! I have pictures of the scene somewhere. Must dig them out and post them.

 

that would be worth seeing!

[aclass007]

Yes! There was a factory in Ballina at that time that made footballs. I think it was called Mayco....or something similar...

[enniscorthyman]

125 was very badly damaged,and I have seen a photo of her

in Inchicore just in the corner of the photo and all of the cab

was gone,however she was rebuilt and did work till 1986 when

she was withdrawn due to fire.She was the first GM to be

withdrawn and a good few of her 121 sisters seemed to

suffer the same fate.There was a time in the early 90s

that IE thought about rebuilding these locos such as 125

126,132,121,174,191 and a few other 141s that had bad

corrosion,However this was not done I persume due to

the arrival of railcars and the downturn in freight.

When fire damaged the traction motor cables and

the end to end control cables not to mention the body

damage,IE seemed to condem them very quickly.

Strangely I saw a pristine 130 at Inchicore one year

and the next year she was in a mess having been

Works pilot and withdrawn.

[ttc0169]

Yes! There was a factory in Ballina at that time that made footballs. I think it was called Mayco....or something similar...

 

Not too far out....it was Bellco and its located about three miles to the south of Ballina alongside the Ballina-Manulla line.

[aclass007]

Not too far out....it was Bellco and its located about three miles to the south of Ballina alongside the Ballina-Manulla line.

 

The factory I'm thinking of was located in Belleek, on the banks of the river. It later became Duffy's bakery. I'm probably wrong, though. I was a mere child at the time...

[ttc0169]

 

The factory I'm thinking of was located in Belleek' date=' on the banks of the river. It later became Duffy's bakery. I'm probably wrong, though. I was a mere child at the time... [/quote']

 

Your spot on aclass007,I've asked a cousin of mine who lives in Ballina and she has confirmed what you have said,so the details are right for that 1974 accident,

The owners of Mayco in later years moved out to Corroy and set up Bellco.

[Mayner]

Along with footballs Mayco made plastic toys as part of the 'Buy Irish" campaign and may have had Government support through the IDA and special freight rates with CIE.

 

There seems to have been a few de-railments of the Ballina Goods, for years I had an Evening Press clipping of a pile up of wagons at either Castlerea or Ballyhaunis as a result of a broken axle, the driver was unaware of the accident until the signal man at Claremorris asked what happened to the rest of your train?

 

The B121s had lower braking power than the Bo Bos with only pair of brake cylinders per bogie, not good for holding a heavy loose coupled train on the long down grade from Donamon to Roscommon.

 

CIE were fairly tight for locos in the 60s & 70s and most GM Bo Bos were repaired following collision damage. With the arrival of the 071s and ending of loose coupled freight and later DART there was basically a surplus of locos in the 80s with many 001 Class stored unservicable at Inchacore Works.

[josefstadt]

Some photos of the aftermath of the Roscommon crash. Sorry that they aren't of great quality, I only had a Kodak 'Instamatic' camera at the time. The photos were taken on Saturday 23 February, a week after the crash.

 

Two steam cranes, the Limerick one on the left and the Inchicore one on the right, lifting 125 in the yard at Roscommon. When the loco had been recovered on the previous Sunday it was discovered that the bogies on which it had been placed for the journey back to Inchicore were the wrong way round. So, over the weekend of 23/24 February the two cranes returned to Roscommon to rectify this.

 

General view of Roscommon with work on rectifying 125's bogie problem going on on the right. The Up Westport is in the station, hauled by 176 and another Bo-Bo. Note also the orange coloured per-way van on the left and the complete absence of hi-visability clothing.

 

Another view of the two cranes lifting 125. The extent of the damage to the locomotive can be seen. The driver certainly had a fortunate escape, given the damage to the cab.

 

The damage to the cab meant that it was 'out of gauge' for the move to Inchicore, so part of it was cut away and can be seen dumped on the ground behind the loco. Note the man on the roof of the locomotive. He had just used the oxy acetylene torch to cut away the part of the cab roof. The locomotive was hauled to Inchicore on 1 March.

 

The scene at the crash site. Debris had been cleared from the running line and services had resumed past the site on the evening of the day of the crash (16 Feb). The bogie wagon had been immediately behing the locomotive and the remainder of the train, about 33 wagons, was composed of 4-wheel stock. The displaced heavy cast concrete buffer stop can be seen in front of the wagons. I can't imagine that if the same incident happened now that the line would, under the current H & S regime, be reopened with such speed.

 

It is also interesting to rember that just four days after these photos were taken there was another serious derailment of the CIÉ network at Longford. But that's a story for another thread.

[ttc0169]

Wow brilliant photos there Stephen,thanks very much for posting,I had often wondered what condition 125 was in after being removed by the steam cranes.

[Glenderg]

Indeed, super photos. Love the "umpire" in the middle of it all, the standard management "poses" well captured! From a nerdy perspective, it's an interesting way to see the underside of a 42' flat...

[heirflick]

absolutely superb pics! great to see those breakdown cranes in action.... a superb scene! thanks for posting them and bty the pic quality excelent!

[Flying Scotsman 4472]

Brilliant photos thanks for sharing.

[Kirley]

Thanks for sharing, the photographs give a great insight into the railway workings of that time.

[enniscorthyman]

I loved them as well thanks.

[burnthebox]

Great photo's, thanks for sharing, now something else to mosel

[josefstadt]

Thanks for the kind words lads, glad you liked the photos. From the state of 125 it is clear why it was never quite the same again!

[aclass007]

Great pics and info.

[Sulzer201]

Thanks from me too - those photos are wonderful and historic. It's interesting to see the extent of the damage to that 121 class loco. In contrast, the 121 derailed at Clough, Gorey in 1975, remained largely intact even after she'd rolled. Also of note is the fact that these locos (running as a single unit), were expected to haul fairly heavy trains.