1940 Norton Fitzwarren rail crash
| Norton Fitzwarren rail crash | |
|---|---|
| Details | |
| Date | 4 November 1940 03:47 |
| Location | Norton Fitzwarren, Somerset |
| Country | England |
| Line | Reading to Plymouth Line |
| Operator | Great Western Railway |
| Cause | Signal passed at danger |
| Statistics | |
| Trains | 1 |
| Passengers | ~900 |
| Deaths | 27 |
| Injured | 74 |
| List of UK rail accidents by year | |
The Norton Fitzwarren rail crash occurred on 4 November 1940 between Taunton and Norton Fitzwarren in the English county of Somerset, when the driver of a train misunderstood the signalling and track layout, causing him to drive the train through a set of points and off the rails at approximately 40 miles per hour (64 km/h). 27 people were killed. The locomotive involved was GWR King Class GWR 6028 King Class King George VI which was subsequently repaired and returned to service. A previous significant accident occurred here on 10 November 1890 and the Taunton train fire of 1978 was also within 2 metres (6 ft 7 in).