Salisbury train crash news – Newborn baby pulled from wreckage as 17 hospitalised in rail smash inside Fisherton Tunnel
THE SALISBURY train involved in a crash which left 17 people in hospital had derailed SEVEN minutes before the second train hit.
A newborn baby was one of 100 people evacuated by more than 50 firefighters after the two trains collided in the Fisherton Tunnel near Salisbury, while a train driver was reportedly trapped in the wreckage for two hours.
At roughly 6.45pm yesterday evening the Great Western Rail service from Portsmouth Harbour to Bristol Temple Meads struck a mystery object – causing the rear carriage to derail.
Seven minutes later the 17:20 South West Rail train from London Waterloo to Honiton in Devon sped through the tunnel and crashed into the other train leaving dozens of passengers injured as sparks flew.
Read our Salisbury Train Crash live blog below for the latest updates…
- Joseph Gamp
Travel chaos caused by train collision to continue for several days
Disruption following a train crash in Salisbury which left several people injured will continue for several days.
National Rail Enquiries said most of the lines serving the Wiltshire city are blocked and "will remain closed until at least the end of the day on Thursday".
This is affecting Great Western Railway (GWR) services on the route linking Cardiff and Bristol with Portsmouth and Brighton.
Several South Western Railway (SWR) routes are also affected, such as London Waterloo-Exeter, Bristol-Salisbury and Southampton-Salisbury.
Passengers are urged not to travel on the affected parts of the network.
The collision between two trains happened at Fisherton Tunnel, close to London Road in Salisbury, at around 7pm on Sunday.
- Joseph Gamp
Anonymous senior railway whistleblower claims there was 'major flaw'
A senior railway engineer has claimed there must have been a "major flaw" that allowed the high-speed inter-city service to smash into the first locomotive.
The anonymous whistleblower told MailOnline when the Great Western Service derailed, there should be an "automatic obstruction warning" to stop any train from coming within a mile of it.
"There has been a major flaw within the signalling system within Network Rail," he said.
"According to my system, the signalling system was aware seven minutes before impact. It should’ve automatically stopped the train. It should’ve automatically set all signals to red. If the driver didn’t see the signal, the system should’ve made the train stop."
He said Network Rail has overseen "numerous failures" – and he'd feared such an incident for "two years".
- Joseph Gamp
'It all happened so fast' says terrified passenger
Passenger Dimitri Popa, from Romania, was travelling on the train from London to Sherborne when the terrifying crash occurred.
The 17-year-old recalled: "It all happened so fast…
"I was just sitting in the first carriage and there was a huge crash."
"The carriage was 45 degrees to the right. We didn't know where we were or anything… we were all just so shocked."
- Joseph Gamp
NHS trust confirms 13 people treated in hospital
Salisbury NHS Foundation Trust said 13 people were treated at Salisbury District Hospital following the train crash in the city.
It said in a statement: "Following the derailment in Salisbury last night, we can confirm that 13 casualties were treated at Salisbury District Hospital.
"Four of these casualties were admitted. One patient has been discharged and three remain as inpatients.
"We are pleased to report that all are in a stable condition."
- Joseph Gamp
Passenger recalls 'being thrown from seat' due to impact of collision
Sailor Morgan Harris, who was travelling from London Waterloo back to his base in Yeovil, said he was thrown from his seat due to the impact of the huge crash.
The 20-year-old said: “It was all going along normally then, all of a sudden, there was this massive bang and all of the lights went out.
“There were sparks and flames from where we had come off the track, and there was a load of ash coming from outside.
“Our train was on its side… I was thrown out of my seat and banged against the table.”
- Joseph Gamp
South Western Railway says its 'too early to speculate'
Claire Mann, managing director of South Western Railway, said it is "too early to speculate" about a collision between two trains in a tunnel near Salisbury.
She told Good Morning Britain: "Our focus at the moment is with the customers and colleagues that have been affected by this and obviously working with the emergency services to understand exactly what happened.
"Speculation is really not appropriate at this time. We really need to wait for the investigation to take its course and then we'll know exactly what happened.
"But I would like to say a big thank you to the emergency services who were really swift in response last night, and we moved people from the train quite quickly."
- Joseph Gamp
Nosie of train crash likened to 'a bomb'
A mother who was out trick or treating with her family nearby likened the noise of the crash to "a bomb" and "thunder".
Tamar Vellacott said she was walking outside with her young children, mother and partner on Jewell Close, Bishopdown, around a kilometre from the scene.
"It was a noise we've never heard before … my young ones started panicking thinking it was a bomb and we said maybe a lorry had crashed on the London Road and not to panic," the 25-year-old said.
"There was no screeching like brakes, just a long rumbling sound like thunder hitting the railway line."
- Joseph Gamp
GWR says 'specalist teams continue investigations' today
In a statement, Great Western Railway (GWR) said the railway in the area would remain closed on Monday as "specialist teams continue their investigations".
It urged customers not to travel on the affected part of the network, adding the closure would affect SWR trains between Exeter and Basingstoke and GWR trains between Westbury and Portsmouth.
Transport Secretary Grant Shapps tweeted: "My thoughts go out to those affected by the serious rail incident near Salisbury."
He said the Rail Accident Investigation Branch and Office of Rail and Road will investigate, adding: "We need to understand how this happened to prevent in the future."
- Joseph Gamp
Fire & rescue helped evacuate '100 people' from scene
Dorset & Wiltshire Fire and Rescue Service said in a statement it had helped evacuate "approximately 100 people" from the scene.
The driver had been trapped after the crash but was released from his cab having sustained injuries that were not believed to be serious, sources confirmed to the PA news agency.
A Network Rail spokesperson said: "At around 7pm this evening, the rear carriage of the 1708 Great Western Railway service from Portsmouth Harbour to Bristol Temple Meads derailed after striking an object on its approach to Salisbury station.
"The derailment knocked out all of the signalling in the area. Subsequently, the 1720 South Western Railway service from London Waterloo to Honiton then collided with the Bristol train."
- Joseph Gamp
British Transport Police statement in full
The statement said: "We were called to Fisherton Tunnel in Salisbury at 6.46pm tonight following reports of a train derailment which involved two passenger trains colliding.
"Officers are continuing to respond to the incident alongside our emergency service colleagues and the line is expected to be shut for some time.
"Thankfully there have been no fatalities however a number of people have been injured and a casualty centre has been opened at a nearby church.
"Most of these people are walking wounded however a small number, including the driver, have been taken to hospital where their injuries are being assessed.
"A major incident has been declared and this has been a large scale, multi-agency response working closely alongside our colleagues in Wiltshire. We will remain on scene throughout the night working to establish the full circumstances of how this incident came to happen."
- Joseph Gamp
Small number of people taken to hospital
A "small number" of people have been taken to hospital following a collision between two trains in Salisbury on Sunday evening.
The incident happened when a carriage was derailed after hitting an object, and a second train then crashed into it when signalling was damaged.
British Transport Police (BTP) said "a number of people" were injured in the incident, which occurred at Fisherton Tunnel close to London Road in the city.
In a statement late on Sunday night, BTP confirmed there were no fatalities in the incident, but a "small number" of people, including the driver of one of the trains, were taken to hospital to have their injuries assessed.
- Joseph Gamp
Network Rail director 'does not know exactly' what happened
Martin Frobisher, group safety and engineering director, technical authority, at Network Rail, said he does not know exactly what happened in the Salisbury train collision on Sunday evening.
He told BBC Radio 4's Today Programme: "We're hugely relieved that nobody was seriously injured, but the passengers must have had a really scary experience, and we're very sorry for that.
"We're obviously starting now a very detailed and forensic investigation into what happened.
"The Rail Accident Investigation Branch are on site and they're incredibly thorough in the work that they do.
"And that'll help us learn from this, and that's why these events are very rare, because we follow it up very, very carefully, and make sure that we do everything possible to prevent it for the future."
Mr Frobisher said it is "far too early to speculate", adding that there is "a lot of contradictory information" in the early stages of an investigation.
- H. J. Hayes
TRAIN CARRIAGE TILTED '45 DEGREES,' REPORTS PASSENGER
Passenger Dimitri Popa, from Romania, was traveling on the train from London to Sherborne when the terrifying crash occurred.
The 17-year-old added: "It all happened so fast… I was just sitting in the first carriage and there was a huge crash.
"Then I saw the flames and got pretty scared, and all the lights went out.
"The carriage was 45 degrees to the right. We didn't know where we were or anything… we were all just so shocked."
Network Rail tonight confirmed the crash unfolded when one of the trains derailed after hitting an object, and a second train then collided with it when signalling was affected.
The driver of the second train was trapped in the cab following the horror crash.
He has now been released from his cab and has been taken to hospital – but is not seriously injured, according to sources.
- Joseph Gamp
Commuters to face delays and cancellations today after train collision
Rail passengers will face delays and cancellations today after the collision between two trains in Salisbury on Sunday evening, but other lines hit by storm damage over the weekend are returning to normal.
In a statement, Martin Frobisher, safety and engineering director at Network Rail, said: "Passengers had a rough day yesterday for which we are truly sorry. Our engineering teams have battled through the night to repair the storm damage, all of which has been successfully completed and services have resumed this morning out of London Euston and London King's Cross.
"There will be some residual delays and cancellations today, particularly out of Euston and passengers should check their journey plans with their operators websites for more details.
"The line through Salisbury following last night's collision, remains closed as investigations into the incident continue today."
- H. J. Hayes
NATIONAL POLICE AIR SERVICE DEPLOYED TO ASSIST
- H. J. Hayes
GREAT WESTERN RAILWAY STATEMENT: LINES CLOSED DURING RESPONSE
- H. J. Hayes
REAR CARRIAGE DERAILED AFTER 'STRIKING AN OBJECT'
- H. J. Hayes
CRASH WAS 'LIKE A TERROR ATTACK'
Terrified students called their parents to tell them they loved them after their train crashed and filled with smoke like a “terror attack”.
Seventeen people have reportedly been taken to hospital after two trains collided inside Fisherton Tunnel near Salisbury tonight.
Callum Stedman, 16, said passengers believed they would die and started calling their parents to tell them that they loved them.
Callum, from Weybridge, Surrey, had been returning to Warminster School after the half term when the incident happened.
The boarder said: “The train was quite full. I was standing. We felt a jolt and everything went black.
“We all landed on each other and the train was at 45 degrees on its side.
“Then lights started coming on from people’s phones and we started looking around, you see people with broken noses and black eyes and blood dripping.
- H. J. Hayes
DRIVER TRAPPED, HOSPITALIZED FOLLOWING CRASH
The driver of the second train was trapped in the cab following the horror crash.
He has now been released from his cab and has been taken to hospital – but is not seriously injured, according to sources.
- H. J. Hayes
PASSENGERS DID NOT REALIZE WHAT THEY WERE HEARING
Peter Golden, 52, from Laverstock, Wiltshire, said: “It sounded like something big collapsing – the sound of things falling into each other.
“With the windy day we’ve had I first thought it was a big gust of wind that has knocked something heavy over.
“It wasn’t till the helicopter arrived on station over the tunnel that I realised what I had heard.”
- H. J. Hayes
TRANSPORT MINISTER 'IN CLOSE COMMUNICATION' WITH NETWORK RAIL'
Chris Heaton-Harris tweeted about the collision. He said: “I am aware of a rail incident that took place near Salisbury.
“Emergency Services are on the scene and I am in close communication with Network Rail & operators.
“Our thoughts are with those affected by this serious incident.”
- H. J. Hayes
INVESTIGATION OF CRASH WILL BE LAUNCHED
The Rail Accident Investigation Branch confirmed that they will be launching a probe into the incident.
SouthWestern Railway confirmed that they were investigating a problem between Salisbury and Grateley.
- H. J. Hayes
CRASH SITE IN TUNNEL DIFFICULT TO REACH
- H. J. Hayes
VIDEO: BTP OFFICIALS GIVE STATEMENT TO MEDIA
- H. J. Hayes
BRITISH TRANSPORT POLICE RELEASES STATEMENT
"Thankfully there have been no fatalities however a number of people have been injured and a casualty centre has been opened at a nearby church," said the British Transport Police.
"Most of these people are walking wounded however a small number, including the driver, have been taken to hospital where their injuries are being assessed.
"A major incident has been declared and this has been a large scale, multi-agency response working closely alongside our colleagues in Wiltshire.
"We will remain on scene throughout the night working to establish the full circumstances of how this incident came to happen."
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