Aracaju train crash | |
---|---|
Details | |
Date | March 20, 1946 |
Location | Aracaju |
Country | Brazil |
Operator | VFF Leste Brasileiro [1] |
Incident type | Derailment |
Cause | Brake Failure caused by worn-out brakes |
Statistics | |
Trains | 1 |
Passengers | 1000 |
Deaths | 185 |
Injured | 300 |
The Aracaju train crash, which occurred on March 20, 1946, is the worst ever rail disaster in Brazil; resulting in the deaths of 185 people [2] and 300 injured. [3] The accident happened near Aracaju, capital of the coastal state of Sergipe, 800 miles (1,287 km) northeast of Rio de Janeiro. [2]
The train concerned was a suburban service operating between Aracaju and Capela, Sergipe, [4] and carrying about one thousand passengers. [2] The locomotive, baggage car and three passenger cars [5] were derailed whilst descending a steep incline near Aracaju, [2] most of the dead being "smashed within the cars", "Many bodies were mutilated so badly that identification was impossible". [5]
Grief-stricken relatives came to the scene and nearly lynched the surviving locomotive engineer who, depending on the source, either took refuge in a police station [3] or fled the area later to surrender in the town of Laranjeiras, Sergipe. [2] The train conductors also fled. [5]
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