Accident at Connington south s/box in 1967

[Mickey]

Anyone have any thoughts on this 'strange accident' at Connington south seven miles south of Peterborough on the GN main line in March 1967?. According to the 'official report' (which is on line) the signalman 'deliberately' found out away of bypassing the electrical interlocking on the lever frame so he could un-lock a FPL lever in the lever frame and reverse a set of facing points underneath a northbound express out of Kings Cross one Sunday night. After holding the points lever in the reverse position for several seconds while the express was running over the facing points he then restored the points lever to the normal position in the lever frame and then re-locked the FPL lever as well (not using the sealed releases on the block shelf to bypass the electrical interlocking?). The signalman concerned managed to kill several people and injure many more in the ensuing accident and for a while he nearly got away with it but it was eventually worked out how he did it through many hours of testing at Derby research centre and on the lever frame at Connington south it's self. He managed to achieve this by bypassing the electrical interlocking which also in turn threw up a 'flaw' in the electrically interlocking at Connington south. Micky GN/LNER all the way

[jwealleans]

http://www.railwaysarchive.co.uk/docume ... on1967.pdf

[Mickey]

I did wonder if this signalman used a 'knife' to get at the 'back-locks' but no mention of that sort of 'illegal tampering' of the electric locks in this accident was mentioned in the official report. Also there are things called 'sealed releases' that a signalman can use only in an emergency which enables him to be able to bypass the electrical interlocking for example if he has a track circuit failure on particular set of points. This is usually operated 'rarely' and when it is operated it is operated with due 'care and attention' as the signalman is bypassing all the electrical interlocking. The signalman does this by breaking the clear glass and a paper seal which also has the s&t linesman's signature written on it in a metal rectangular box that is usually fixed above the lever that it applys to. The signalman after breaking the glass depresses a button which he must continue to depress which will allow him to move the lever to the reverse position or to restore the lever to normal position in the lever frame that otherwise he wouldn't be able to operate because of the track circuit failure. Up to about 10 years ago on Network Rail the 'sealed releases' when broken were replaced by the s&t linesmen like they had always been done but now days the sealed releases have been left devoid of the clear glass and paper seal because Network Rail are frightened that the poor darling's (meaning signaller's Railtrack/Network Rail terminology) will cut there finger if they break the glass when operating a sealed release and will sue the company!. Micky GNR/LNER all the way...

[hq1hitchin]

Could say more, Micky, but let's just say Mr Frost had previous with the S&T at P'boro and and there was an standing instruction that they weren't to attend failures there when he was on duty without consulting the 'on call' S&T inspector first.

[Mickey]

Just out of curiosity Mr.Frost if he is still alive he would be 65 yrs old now does anyone know what became of him after he left the railway?. Micky

[hq1hitchin]

Just out of curiosity Mr.Frost if he is still alive he would be 65 yrs old now does anyone know what became of him after he left the railway?. Micky

Was told that, when he came out of prison, he went to work for British Domestic Appliances and some years ago that he had died - think the former Divisional Chief himself told me that. I hope it is true. He left a very bad taste in the mouths of a lot of decent railwaymen in P'boro, so much so that I was specially warned by The Chief not to mention it the first time he sent me to work there. It was still too painful a subject.

[Mickey]

Thanks hq 1 hitchin for that info i was wondering what became of him so he's now dead then?. I read he got 2 years inside for causing the accident but one never hears what becomes of these people after the report is published like the signalman in the Welwyn Garden City accident of 1935 i wonder what became of him?. Micky GNR/LNER all the way...

[hq1hitchin]

Thanks hq 1 hitchin for that info i was wondering what became of him so he's now dead then?. I read he got 2 years inside for causing the accident but one never hears what becomes of these people after the report is published like the signalman in the Welwyn Garden City accident of 1935 i wonder what became of him?. Micky GNR/LNER all the way...

The same Chief Inspector told me, only the other year, that the signalman involved in the 1935 collision at WGC was kept on the the LNER - they gave him a job as a guard. You cannot help but feel sorry for the man, that was a pure accident, a terrible mistake on his part. There, but for the grace of God....

[Mickey]

Onetime if a signalman use to 'mess up' and was taken out of the box but kept on by the company the company use to give him a lampman's or a messenger's job. That option finished with the ending of British Rail in the mid 90s plus with the gradual closure of mechanical signal boxes and the disappearance of semaphore signalling in the last 15-20 years throughout the country. Micky