Turenki rail accident
Turenki rail accident | |
---|---|
Details | |
Date | 12 March 1940 05:28 ( Harviala 95 km (59 mi) N from Helsinki |
Country | Finland |
Line | Riihimäki–Tampere railway |
Operator | VR |
Incident type | Train collision |
Cause | Signalling error |
Statistics | |
Trains | 2 |
Deaths | 39 |
Injured | 69 |
The Turenki rail accident occurred on 12 March 1940, at 05:28 local time (03:28
The accident was caused by a signalling error; the signaller, who was still on probation and who had been awake for the past 36 hours, mistakenly cleared the freight train to pass Turenki north towards the Harviala railway station, even though the troop train had already passed the latter station which had been chosen as the place the two trains would pass each other.
The accident went largely unreported, as the accident happened during World War II and on the same day that the Moscow Peace Treaty which ended the Winter War between Finland and the Soviet Union was signed and went into effect.[2] It was one of three rail accidents to take place in Finland in March 1940; the Iittala rail accident on March 4 claimed 31 lives and the Putikko rail accident on March 18 claimed 14 lives.[1]
A memorial to those who lost their lives in the crash was unveiled at Turenki railway station in 2000.[1]
See also
- Quintinshill rail disaster – the worst rail accident in British history, which took place during wartime (but World War I, not World War II) and was likewise a train collision caused by signalling errors
- Lists of rail accidents
References
- ^ a b c d e f Leponiemi, Timo (3 March 2021). "15 evakkolasta kuoli, ja kuljettajasta jäi jäljelle vain rintaan palanut taskukello – sotasensuuri salasi Suomen tuhoisimmat junaturmat". Yle (in Finnish). Retrieved February 8, 2022.
- ^ a b Heino, Mikko (12 March 2016). "Kovan onnen rataosuus". Ilta-Sanomat (in Finnish). Sanoma. p. 40.
- ^ a b c d Koski, Sami (19 August 2021). "Kohtalokkaat torkut". Iltalehti (in Finnish). Alma Media. Retrieved February 8, 2022.