2012 Sloterdijk train collision
The two trains involved in the collision near Westerpark
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| Date | 21 April 2012 | ||
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| Time | 18:30 local time (16:30 UTC) | ||
| Location | Sloterdijk, Amsterdam | ||
| Coordinates | 52°23′15″N 4°52′44″E / 52.387364°N 4.879003°ECoordinates: 52°23′15″N 4°52′44″E / 52.387364°N 4.879003°E | ||
| Country | Netherlands | ||
| Rail line | Oude Lijn | ||
| Operator | Nederlandse Spoorwegen | ||
| Type of incident | Head-on collision | ||
| Cause | Suspected SPAD | ||
| Statistics | |||
| Trains | 2 | ||
| Passengers | 136 | ||
| Deaths | 1 | ||
| Injuries | 116 (12 critical, 43 or 44 serious, < 60 minor) | ||
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On 21 April 2012 at 18:30 local time (16:30 UTC), two trains collided head-on at Westerpark, near Sloterdijk, in the west of Amsterdam, Netherlands. Approximately 117 people were injured, one of whom later died in a hospital. The collision is thought to have been caused by the driver of one of the trains having passed a red signal.
In the early evening a local train (an NS Sprinter Lighttrain) had just left Amsterdam Centraal and collided with a double-decker NS VIRM Intercity train travelling in opposite direction on the same track. Initial reports varied with potentially between 33 and 136 passengers injured, with up to 20 of them seriously although a member of the fire service later corrected this to 56. The actual figures were reported at 117 injuries (13 critical, 43 or 44 serious, less than 60 minor). On 22 April, a 68-year-old woman died from her injuries. There were sixteen people still in hospital. On Wednesday 23 May, the last train victim in hospital was sent home.
The trains involved were an NS Class 2600 electric multiple unit, number 2658, and an NS VIRM double-deck electric multiple unit, number 8711. Neither of the two trains derailed. Passengers were reported to have been thrown against walls, seats, windows, and other passengers. Just before the crash, witnesses said one of the trains sounded a long hoot of its horn. Photographs show that the VIRM unit received moderate damage, with deformation at the rear of the first and front of the second carriage.
The accident occurred between Amsterdam Centraal and Amsterdam Sloterdijk stations, near Westerpark, suspending railway services between Amsterdam and The Hague as well as to Schiphol Airport on one of the busiest rail routes in the Netherlands. The local train was travelling between Amsterdam and Uitgeest whilst the Intercity train was travelling between Den Helder and Nijmegen. By Sunday afternoon, traffic was partially restored with a full service expected by that evening. The stretch of line where the accident occurred is where trains do not travel at full speed. It is estimated that at the moment of the collision the intercity was travelling at 25–30 km/h (16–19 mph) and the local train at about 20 km/h (12 mph). Bus services were laid on to get people to their destinations during the suspension.
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Wikipedia