SOME OF THE WORST TRAIN WRECKS IN HISTORY

THE MIKAWASHIMA TRAIN CRASH (JAPAN, 1962)

The Mikawashima train crash was a multiple train crash that

happened on May 3, 1962, near Mikawashima Station in

Arakawa, in Tokyo. It involved a freight train and two

passenger trains and cost the lives of more than 160 people.

THE TSURUMI RAIL ACCIDENT (JAPAN, 1963)

Only a year after the Mikawashima train crash, Japan faced

the Tsurumi rail accident that occurred between Tsurumi

Station and Shin-Koyasu Station on the Tokaido Main

Line in Yokohama, about twenty miles south of Tokyo.

In this incident, two passenger trains collided with

a derailed freight train, killing 162 people.

THE ARACAJU TRAIN CRASH (BRAZIL, 1946)

The Aracaju train crash, which occurred on March 20, 1946,

was the worst-ever rail disaster in Brazil, killing 185

people and injuring three hundred more.

THE TENGA RAIL DISASTER (MOZAMBIQUE, 2002)

This rail disaster happened at Tenga, twenty-five miles northwest

of Maputo, Mozambique, on May 25, 2002, causing 192 deaths

and injuring 167 others. According to local authorities, the

crash was a result of human error and a manoeuvre

that went horribly wrong.

THE KHANNA RAIL DISASTER (INDIA, 1998)

The Khanna rail disaster occurred at 3:15 on November 26,

1998, near Khanna on the Khanna–Ludhiana section of

India’s Northern Railway in Punjab, when the local express

collided with six derailed coaches of the Amritsar-bound

Frontier Mail, which were lying in its path. More than 212

people were killed out of the 2,500 passengers on both trains.

THE QUINTINSHILL RAIL CRASH (SCOTLAND, 1915)

This rail disaster occurred on May 22, 1915, near Gretna Green,

Dumfriesshire, Scotland, at Quintinshill. The accident involved

five trains, killing about 226 people and injuring 246. It

remains the worst rail crash in the United Kingdom’s

history in terms of death toll.

THE LAGNY-POMPONNE RAILROAD DISASTER

(FRANCE, 1933)

The Lagny-Pomponne rail disaster occurred on December 23,

1933, between Pomponne and Lagny-sur-Marne when the

4-8-2 express locomotive to Strasbourg crashed at

110 km/hr (65 mph) into the rear of an auxiliary train bound

for Nancy. The accident’s impact on French society was huge

because both trains were full of people going home for

Christmas. It was reported that 204 people died and

120 were injured.

THE EL VIRILLA TRAIN ACCIDENT (COSTA RICA, 1926)

The El Virilla train accident occurred in Costa Rica on March 14,

1926, when an overcrowded train carrying mostly farmers

and labourers derailed while crossing a bridge over the

Virilla River Canyon. 248 people died and 93 were injured.

It remains to this day the deadliest train accident in the

country’s history.

THE GENTHIN TRAIN DISASTER (GERMANY, 1939)

Taking place on the evening of December 21–22, 1939, the

Genthin train disaster on the Berlin–Magdeburg Railway

claimed the lives of 278 people.