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The Dahlerau train disaster was a railway accident that took place on May 27, 1971 in Dahlerau, a small town in Radevormwald, West Germany, in which a freight train and a passenger train collided head-on. Forty-six people perished in the accident; forty-one were senior year pupils of the ''Geschwister-Scholl-Schule'' in Radevormwald. It was the deadliest accident in West Germany since its foundation in 1949, surpassed after German reunification by the Eschede train disaster in 1998. ==Timeline of events== On the evening of May 27, 1971, shortly after 21:00, a train made up of two class VT 95 railbuses of the Deutsche Bundesbahn was running as special service Eto 42227 (units 795 375 + 995 325) on the single-track line between Wuppertal-Oberbarmen and Radevormwald, the . The train was occupied by senior year pupils of a Radevormwald middle school, their teachers and accompanying railway staff, on the return journey from a class outing in Bremen. The service was about 30 minutes delayed by the time it left the previous station at Wuppertal-Beyenburg. A regular local freight train, Ng 16856 (pulled by 212 030, a DB Class V 100 engine) was approaching Dahlerau station in the opposite direction at this time, so the dispatchers at Dahlerau and Beyenburg agreed that the freight should stop at Dahlerau station to let the delayed special pass. In normal operation, the freight train would not stop at Dahlerau. Dahlerau station was equipped with entrance signals, which could show aspects Hp 0 (stop) or Hp 1 (proceed); but it lacked exit signals to control departing trains. In place of exit signals, 'stop' boards were provided at the end of the platform. In absence of any other signal, all trains were obliged to stop at the board to await instructions; the dispatcher, however, could show a green hand lamp to an approaching train, which allowed its crew to ignore the stop board. This is what would normally have happened to the freight train. The freight train passed the entrance signal as normal, then pulled into the station, expecting the dispatcher's instructions. Although not strictly necessary according to the rules, the dispatcher declared that he showed a red hand lamp to the approaching freight train to make absolutely sure it would stop (according to the rules, the 'stop' board was enough to halt the train). It is unclear what happened next, but the train failed to stop as supposed to, and departed toward Wuppertal. The driver later claimed that the train dispatcher had signalled him with a green light using his hand lamp, the signal to pass the 'stop' board. The train trailed the points already set for the passenger train, as the points' seal, which ruptures in such an event, was later found to be missing. About north of the station, on a curve, both trains collided. The motor coach of the two-car special train was compacted to one third of its length and pushed backwards by the freight train locomotive, which was five times as heavy and higher than the railbus. The dispatcher at Dahlerau tried to hold back the departing train by running alongside it and giving emergency signals, but failed to get the driver's attention. He then immediately telephoned the dispatcher in Wuppertal-Beyenburg to try and stop the passenger train. However, the train had already departed from Beyenburg, and there was no way for the dispatcher to reach either the freight train or the railbus by radio, as the station and trains did not have the necessary equipment. The dispatcher, faced with the now inevitable crash, phoned emergency services, informing them of the accident about to happen. Ambulances, firefighters and police were promptly ordered from Radevormwald, Wuppertal and Solingen. The rescue effort was hindered by the inaccessibility of the accident site on a hillside and by parents who had waited for the train at Radevormwald station and had now come to search for their children, as well as onlookers who were attracted by the rescue effort. Because of the quick rescue and medical treatment, 25 people survived despite severe injuries. 41 pupils, two teachers, a mother and two railway staff died. A single pupil was the only person not injured at all. A crisis squad was established at the Radevormwald town hall. Due to the high body count, the dead were laid out in the Bredderstraße gymnasium. Some of the funeral homes that were asked to supply coffins at night time first thought they were receiving prank calls due to the supposed improbability of such a severe accident. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Dahlerau train disaster」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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