Truck hits train- Kerang

[eddiesmith]

http://www.news.com.au/heraldsun/story/0,21985,21852883-661,00.html

Nine dead in train horror
Karen Collier and Matthew Pinkney

A PASSENGER on the train in which at least nine people were killed has described hearing the "screaming, crying and moaning" of injured survivors. Seven passengers are unaccounted for.

Twenty-three passengers were injured - 12 of them seriously - when a truck ploughed into a train near Kerang.

According to passenger Sue Fyffe, shaken survivors helped others still in the wreckage and covered in glass.

"All you could hear were people screaming and crying and moaning," Ms Fyffe told Sky news. "It was just awful, it was devastating."

Ms Fyffe said there were no boom gates, only flashing lights at the level crossing.

And she speculated the sun may have got in the truck driver's eyes before the smash. Other sources said the truck appeared to have hit the train in a 'T-bone' collision.

Ms Fyffe was among dozens of passengers sitting by the road waiting to be taken to Bendigo for a medical checkup.

Another witness said the smash appeared to have torn the train in two. ``It looks like a toy train set that was torn apart,'' the witness said.

The train was derailed and mangled in the crash at 1.40pm.

Some passengers told of escaping the full impact because they got up to get cups of coffee moments before.

Others watched in horror knowing the truck was going to hit.

Six patients were airlifted to Melbourne. They included a 15-year-old critically-injured girl flown to the Royal Children's Hospital, an 83-year-old man with spinal and leg injuries and a 40-year-old woman with abdominal injuries to the Royal Melbourne Hospital, and a 45-year-old man with suspected head injuries to the Alfred Hospital.

Kerang District Hospital chief Robert Jarman said all available nursing and medical staff had been called in on standby.

The hospital has admitted six patients with serious or moderate injuries.

"We understand there are still a large number of walking wounded out at the site," Mr Jarman said.

The semi-trailer driver survived, with the dead and injured all on board the V/Line train. The truck driver was taken to Mildura Base Hospital with serious injuries. The train's driver also survived.

Three V/Line crew members on the Melbourne-bound train were among the wounded.

"We've got a number of people deceased ... as you can imagine the scene is pretty confused," a police spokeswoman said earlier.

Premier Steve Bracks and Public Transport Minister Lynne Kosky are flying to the scene.

The accident happened at a level crossing on the Murray Valley Highway about 6km northwest of Kerang, Victoria Police said.

The train left Swan Hill bound for Southern Cross Station at 1pm.
A spokeswoman for the Rural Ambulance Service said at least six ambulances from as far away as Mildura had headed for the crash scene.

Two helicopters and three planes headed to the scene to ferry the most seriously-injured to Melbourne.

Police, ambulance, the Country Fire Authority and State Emergency Service are on the scene.

Concerned relatives and friends can call 1800-800-120 for further information.


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Reported up to 10 dead now

Shocking tragedy, condolences to all those who lost people in this horror smash

Truck drivers

[David]

Terrible, I guess now they have to find out how it happened and make sure it doesn't happen again.

I thought they had boom gates in Victoria? Or is it only in Melbourne?

[bazdaddy]

As the first two posts suggested how the driver couldn't see the train I do not know.

Terrible tradgedy, condolences to all involved, absoloutely shocking.

[stui magpie]

Only have boom gates in Melbourne Dave. Lots of train crossings in country victoria only have lights, some don't even have that.

I originally come from a country town in NSW on the murray and there's two nearby train line crossings that have absolutely nothing there for a warning, it relies on the driver looking before crossing. Since it's not a passenger line and only carries freight, trains are not that frequent but when they do come thru they're big bastards.

[Fire Up]

OK. i have a chick on my msn. and she works as a operator for boom gates for rail crossings around the whole of australia.

they are suppose to put boom gates there BUT they were going to do it next week.

after seeing wot happened on the news i think its aboit time all rail crossings had boom gates

also wot was the truck driver thinking. didn't he see the train. surely he could of seen the 1st carriage go past.

could speed, lack of rest or sleep be to blame in this instance

[David]

Just on the boom gates, it seems a reasonable suggestion that they should be generally implemented. I guess it just comes down to the cost and practicality of doing so.

[Proud Pies]

[Proud Pies]

Deepest sympathy and condolences to all those that have been affected by this tragedy.

[fan4collingwood]

[Fire Up]

tess- i meant speed at which the truck driver was driving at. coz if he was doing the correct limit he would of stopped in time.

[eddiesmith]

[rambopriscilla]

[stui magpie]

[member34258]

Now, I don't drive in suburban Melbourne all tat often, but i was there a couple of months ago staying with my sister.
There are a couple of major train intersections within a few kilometres that have to be negotiated. They have boom gates. One is adjacent to a large roundabout.
At both of these crossings I saw cars drive around the gates. At the one with the roundabout, I saw a truck drive through even though the gate was coming down. He got stopped at the roundabout and his arse was still over one set of tracks.
Luckily, the set that was not being used.

[stui magpie]