Required fields are marked *. "If the truth was fully known it possibly would have bankrupted them.". A government inquiry found the primary cause of the crash was the poor fastening of the track on the bend – a consequence of inadequate maintenance. Your email address will not be published. Australia's Granville train disaster killed 83 people in 1977. "I have a hand written letter from [Tom Weir] that says how he was being harassed by Murray Farquhar," he said. What was the Granville Train Disaster death toll: 83 died and over 213 were significantly injured. Gobbe welcomed the move, saying "people have been looking for some sort of admittance by the government that they handled things very badly and they just wanted an apology for that. Coroner Weir was supposedly haunted by what had happened until he died in 1996. "He released as much [information] as he possibly could without losing his job but in the end he did lose his job. Admitting to pre-existing knowledge of a defective wheel would have opened up the then-Labor state government to a far more punishing degree of compensation claims, he said. Originally published asGranville train crash victims remembered. Gobbe said he was "very impressed" with a recent review of Sydney Trains' current safety operations and procedures. Worse still, rescuers had to cope with many lucid victims who conversed bravely with them until finally freed, at which point they died almost immediately from crush syndrome – renal failure following the release of muscle myoglobins that build up in trapped limbs. When was the Granville Train Disaster: January 18 1977, Where was the Granville Train Disaster: Granville, New South Wales, Australia. The crash was caused by bad track maintenance, but it is now generally agreed that the full extent of official negligence was covered up at the time. The aftermath was horrifying for those who struggled to deal with the shattered train. A report into the Granville crash concluded that a derailment was "inevitable" because the condition of the track was poor. All times AEDT (GMT +11). He urged the NSW government to put more funding into rail maintenance. The locomotive that hauled 83 passengers to their death in the Granville Rail Disaster had a defective wheel that the NSW government knew about and later covered up, according to the author of a book on Australia's deadliest train crash. "One particular family didn't even get enough money to even put a headstone on their grave," he recalled. Gobbe claimed to have been in "very close contact" with NSW Transport Minister Andrew Constance and Sydney Trains. Find out more about our policy and your choices, including how to opt-out. The last survivor was not released for 48 hours but he, too, tragically died shortly afterwards. They demoted him, put him in a back room but they kept his wages the same so he wouldn't say anything.". What was the Granville Train Disaster death toll: 83 died and over 213 were significantly injured. Built in 1957, the Co+Co 46 class No 4620 had previously featured in a dramatic accident in 1965, when the brakes failed as it hauled a goods train down from the Blue Mountains towards Sydney. You should know: The electric locomotive that derailed at Granville was an ill-starred engine. Gobbe said Weir's son Jamie had personally told him that his father, while lying on his deathbed, "was still very upset with the way he was treated by his bosses". Granville train crash victims remembered ABOUT 250 survivors, relatives and emergency service workers have gathered to remember the victims of the Granville train disaster … Agonizingly, the bridge’s heavy concrete and steel central section collapsed ten seconds later, bringing a number of cars down with it and pancaking half of each carriage below. Money had been at the root of the cover up, Gobbe alleged. Parramatta Lord Mayor John Chedid described the crash as a "very, very sad day" in Australia's history. "We've now got the truth out there, what we believe did cause [the crash], not what the government led us to believe.". "I believe [Farquhar] also perverted the course of justice in the Granville train disaster," Gobbe said. Blue Mountains City Library. Many survivors were badly trapped and had serious crush injuries. "We must ensure we never see another disaster on the same scale.". Continue reading After Granville, 4620 was put into storage before being scrapped in 1979. Built in 1957, the Co+Co 46 class No 4620 had previously featured in a dramatic accident in 1965, when the brakes failed as it hauled a goods train down from the Blue Mountains towards Sydney. The runaway train reached a speed of 160 kph (100 mph) before derailing. The carnage that ensued became Australia’s worst-ever rail disaster, taking over 80 lives and injuring more than 200. On 18 January, 2019 we honoured those men, women and children at the 42nd Anniversary which was attended by over one hundred people including Deputy Mayor Glenn Elmore, the Parramatta City Lord Mayor, The Hon. At the time, Weir was being bullied by Chief Stipendiary Magistrate Murray Farquhar and other powerful figures in the shadows, Gobbe said. 4620 a staggering six months before the January 18 crash, Gobbe told nine.com.au. Weir's report briefly mentioned the suspect leading wheel on the locomotive, but Gobbe said the coroner was threatened that his career was at stake unless he stayed silent. "No one has ever disagreed with my findings," he said. 83 (84 as of 2017) Injured. "The thing that surprised me is that crowds are still very large, even after all these years," John Hennessey, president of the Granville Memorial Trust told AAP. The derailed engine and two carriages emerged from beneath the bridge, whereupon the first carriage had its roof ripped off by an overhead gantry – with fatal consequences for several passengers. Just short of Granville Station, the train jumped the tracks at 08:10 and smashed into the overhead Bold Street road bridge supports. "By the time it ran off the track they'd let it run for another 50,000km," Gobbe said. A NOTE ABOUT RELEVANT ADVERTISING: We collect information about the content (including ads) you use across this site and use it to make both advertising and content more relevant to you on our network and other sites. (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); Your email address will not be published. The packed 6.09am Mount Victoria to Sydney train, locomotive No.4620, derailed and crashed as it approached Granville station at about 8.10am on January 18, 1977. The Granville rail/train disaster occurred on Tuesday 18 January 1977 at Granville, New South Wales, a western suburb of Sydney, when a crowded commuter train derailed, running into the supports of a road bridge that collapsed onto …

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