THE Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) has released its final report into a freight train derailment at Traveston, Queensland, in February 2022, highlighting the importance of having serviceable environmental monitoring station equipment to provide an adequate response to extreme weather events.
The report states that an Aurizon intermodal freight train travelling north on Queensland Rail’s North Coast line entered a section of track that had been washed out after a period of heavy rainfall. Visibility was poor as the train was running at night and the driver was unable to stop before the train encountered the damaged track and derailed. Its two diesel locomotives fell on their sides and three wagons derailed, but fortunately the driver escaped with only minor injuries.
The ASTB report references the findings of an investigation which found that an environmental monitoring station at Traveston had generated a critical flood alarm prior to the accident.
However, the required warning was not directly displayed at the relevant workstation at the Rail Management Centre, and email and text message alerts had not been correctly configured, with key personnel details left empty. In addition, the environmental monitoring station rainfall sensor and CCTV camera were unserviceable at the time of the derailment.
Queensland Rail has subsequently implemented comprehensive systemic improvements addressing identified deficiencies in the investigation.
Exit issues
The investigation also found that both the emergency pathway used by the driver to exit the overturned locomotive, and the emergency equipment available in the Aurizon class 2800 were inadequate to enable a prompt escape by crew, and potentially limited access by emergency services in the event of a locomotive overturning.
In response, Aurizon has developed an access and egress compliance strategy to align its locomotive fleet to the relevant national rail standard, and is taking part in a development group reviewing the standard.
“This accident highlights the importance of having serviceable environmental monitoring station equipment, and for network operations personnel to be promptly and reliably alerted to any hazardous condition detected by the system,” says ATSB chief commissioner, Angus Mitchell.
“It also highlights the importance of equipping locomotives with systems to mitigate evacuation hazards that rail traffic crew may encounter following the derailment and rollover of a locomotive. This is particularly so when operating driver only and in remote locations where assistance may not be readily available.”
