Stairfoot rail accident
Encyclopedia
The Stairfoot rail accident was a railway accident that took place at Stairfoot
, South Yorkshire
, England
.
On 12 September 1870 in Barnsley top yard a rake of 10 goods wagons was standing on a gradient of 1 in 119. A single sprag between the spokes of a wheel was holding them. When two gas tank wagons were shunted against the rake, the sprag broke and the 12 wagons began to move. Two pointsmen made valiant efforts to pin down the brakes to no avail. The wagons rapidly gathered speed as the gradient increased to 1 in 72 and passed three signal boxes, none of which had points under their control to deflect the runaways. Meanwhile a passenger train which had left Barnsley at 18:15 was standing at Stairfoot station
one and a half miles away. The runaways struck the rear of the standing train at a speed of at least 40 mph, killing 15 and injuring 59 more.
The enquiry found that the goods guard was gravely at fault for not ensuring the standing wagons were better secured. The layout of the yard was also criticized as there were no trap points to protect the running lines in the event of such a mishap.
Stairfoot
Stairfoot is a village in the metropolitan borough of Barnsley in South Yorkshire, England.It is perhaps so named because it lies in the valley bottom between the directly opposed undulations of two small hills on the old road from Barnsley to Doncaster....
, South Yorkshire
South Yorkshire
South Yorkshire is a metropolitan county in the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England. It has a population of 1.29 million. It consists of four metropolitan boroughs: Barnsley, Doncaster, Rotherham, and City of Sheffield...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
.
On 12 September 1870 in Barnsley top yard a rake of 10 goods wagons was standing on a gradient of 1 in 119. A single sprag between the spokes of a wheel was holding them. When two gas tank wagons were shunted against the rake, the sprag broke and the 12 wagons began to move. Two pointsmen made valiant efforts to pin down the brakes to no avail. The wagons rapidly gathered speed as the gradient increased to 1 in 72 and passed three signal boxes, none of which had points under their control to deflect the runaways. Meanwhile a passenger train which had left Barnsley at 18:15 was standing at Stairfoot station
Stairfoot railway station
Stairfoot railway station was a railway station on the South Yorkshire Railway's main line between Mexborough and Barnsley. It was situated between Wombwell Central and Barnsley...
one and a half miles away. The runaways struck the rear of the standing train at a speed of at least 40 mph, killing 15 and injuring 59 more.
The enquiry found that the goods guard was gravely at fault for not ensuring the standing wagons were better secured. The layout of the yard was also criticized as there were no trap points to protect the running lines in the event of such a mishap.