Glanrhyd Bridge collapse
{{Short description|1987 railway accident in Carmarthenshire, Wales}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2017}}
{{Use British English|date=April 2017}}
{{Infobox public transit accident
| name = Glanrhyd Bridge collapse
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| date = 19 October 1987
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| location = Llandeilo, Carmarthenshire
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| country = Wales, UK
| line = Heart of Wales Line
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| cause = Bridge swept away
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| trains = 1
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| deaths = 4
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| footnotes = List of UK rail accidents by year
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On 19 October 1987, a train on the Heart of Wales line derailed and fell into the River Towy due to the partial collapse of the Glanrhyd Bridge near Llandeilo, Carmarthenshire. Four people died as a result of the tragedy; the driver and three of the passengers drowned.
Description
The event took place early on Monday 19 October 1987. Several days prior, the Great Storm of 1987 occurred, causing widespread damage to infrastructure across Britain. On the Sunday afternoon, a driver who had been attending to engineering works in Llandrindod Wells reported flooding along the line. The responsible traffic manager, after investigation and some deliberation, decided to accompany the first train out on the Monday: the 05:27 from Swansea to Shrewsbury.
The 05:27, which consisted of a two-car Class 108 DMU, fell into the River Towy near Llandeilo at approximately 07:15. The accident was caused by the Glanrhyd Bridge being partially washed away by the swollen river. The train was moving at only {{convert|10|mph|abbr=on}}, which was the normal speed limit for this bridge.{{cite news|author=Clark, Rhodri |title=Rail travel in Wales is so safe, the most dangerous part of a train journey is getting to the station. |url=http://www.thefreelibrary.com/Rail+travel+in+Wales+is+so+safe,+the+most+dangerous+part+of+a+train...-a0169958184 |work=Western Mail |date=19 October 2007 |access-date=4 January 2015 }}
Carwyn Davies, a nearby farmer (and amateur rugby player for Llanelli),{{cite news|title=From the Archives A Glimpse Back in Time |url=http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-33801081.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150329122901/http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-33801081.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=29 March 2015 |work=Llanelli Star |date=24 October 2012 |access-date=4 January 2015 }} had waited until 07:00 for daylight so he could investigate the flooding on his farm. He was {{convert|400|yd}} from the bridge in a flooded field when he saw that a central section of the railway bridge was missing. He attempted to return to his house to telephone a warning, but had not reached there when he heard the train approaching and saw the first carriage "take off" from the bridge.Report on the Collapse of Glanrhyd Bridge (1990), page 5 Davies later helped rescuers to reach the bridge using his tractor.
Of the ten people on board the train, three passengers and three members of British Rail staff managed to escape but the driver and three passengers drowned.Report on the Collapse of Glanrhyd Bridge (1990), page 1 Staff on board included a Traffic Manager and an Engineer who were accompanying the train to inspect the route after reports of flooding and track damage had been received the previous day.Report on the Collapse of Glanrhyd Bridge (1990), pages 2-5 The train left the tracks and fell into the swollen river at Glanrhyd Bridge, though the rear carriage remained partially on the rails and above water. While the passengers and staff were calmly making their way through to the rear carriage, the front carriage broke away and was swept downstream with the driver and three of the passengers (a married couple and a teenage schoolboy) still inside.Report on the Collapse of Glanrhyd Bridge (1990), page 7
A result of the incident was that the procedures for checking railway bridges were tightened. There has been no railway collisions in Wales resulting in a passenger fatality since then until the 21 October 2024 collision near Talerddig{{cite news |last1=Morris |first1=Steven |last2=Topham |first2=Gwyn |last3=Badshah |first3=Nadeem |title=Two trains collide in Wales leaving one person dead and 15 injured |url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2024/oct/21/two-trains-collide-in-wales-near-llanbrynmair-on-shrewsbury-service |work=The Guardian |date=22 October 2024}}
Sources
- {{cite book|title=Report on the Collapse of Glanrhyd Bridge on 19th October 1987 |url=http://www.railwaysarchive.co.uk/documents/DoT_Glanrhyd1987.pdf |publisher=Department of Transport |date=31 January 1990 |isbn=0-11-550961-5 }}
References
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External links
- [https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-wales-south-west-wales-41637278// BBC Report: Glanrhyd disaster: Memories of train tragedy 30 years on]
- [https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/uk-wales-41671620/glanrhyd-30-years-since-carmarthenshire-rail-disaster// BBC Report: Glanrhyd Rail Disaster]
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{{1987 railway accidents}}
{{Railway accidents in the United Kingdom, 1900–1999|state=collapsed}}
Category:Railway accidents in 1987
Category:1987 disasters in the United Kingdom
Category:20th century in Carmarthenshire
Category:History of Carmarthenshire
Category:Bridge disasters in the United Kingdom
Category:Bridge disasters caused by scour damage
Category:Transport in Carmarthenshire