UK rail firm admits failings over fatal rail crash / Photo: © AFP
-
Rene Eyre Revisits Autobiographical Performance 'Say A Little Prayer' in London
-
London Museum Granted 24/7 License Ahead of November Opening
-
UAE's HCT Holds Record Graduation and Announces Major Training Expansion
-
Dana White Confirms Flight to Washington for Trump Meeting on Press Secretary Role
-
NASA Awards $10B Lunar Contract Framework to SpaceX, Blue Origin
-
Dengue Fever Expands Into High Himalayas as Climate Change Warms Nepal
-
Katy Perry Tells Fans Ex-Husband Russell Brand 'Should Be in Jail' During UK Concert
-
IoT Refrigerator Hacks Disrupt Blood Labs and Supermarkets Across Europe and US
-
South African election results renew debate over identity-based voting
-
Post-election pressures complicate US and Israeli decisions on Iran
-
South African voters report smoother local election but declining IEC trust
-
UN members approve talks on treaty protocol against environmental crime
-
Dolly Parton museum and Nashville hotel open after singer’s death
-
Family-run West Sussex beach café prepares for first winter season
-
George and Amal Clooney attend New York political-comedy reading
UK rail firm admits failings over fatal rail crash
The company that owns and manages UK rail infrastructure on Thursday admitted health and safety breaches after a train derailment that killed three people in northeast Scotland.
An early morning Aberdeen to Glasgow passenger train came off the tracks in a remote area near Stonehaven after a landslip caused by heavy rain.
The driver of the train, a conductor and a passenger died and six other people were injured in the tragedy, which happened on August 12, 2020.
Network Rail -- an arm of the UK Department for Transport -- pleaded guilty to safety failings at a court hearing in Aberdeen.
The court was told the public body admitted lapses in the construction, inspection and maintenance of railside drainage, and planning for extreme weather conditions.
"Extreme rainfall" and reports of severe weather, landslips and flooding in the area where the crash happened were forecast on the day of the crash.
But Network Rail failed to impose an emergency speed limit on the line and did not inform the driver it was unsafe or to cut his speed.
The train struck gravel washed onto the line, causing it to derail, decouple and hit a bridge parapet.
P.Staeheli--VB
