Railway Accident: Hyde

When: 4 June, 1943

Where: Hyde, Central Otago

The Cromwell to Dunedin express on 4 June 1943 was made up of seven carriages and carrying 113 passengers, many of them heading for the Winter Show in Dunedin.
The train was travelling at a speed faster than it was supposed to when it took a bend in a deep cutting and came off the rails. It was 1:45 pm.
Just before the accident passengers were being thrown about by the swaying of the train, and luggage and parcels were falling from the overhead racks.
In the impact all seven carriages were derailed and four of them telescoped into each other. One man was thrown out of a window, but received only light cuts.
A farmer saw the crash, and then ran to telephone for help. His son was one of the passengers killed on board the train.
It took one and a half hours for the rescue party to arrive. In the meantime the passengers from the carriages at the back of the train did what they could to help the injured passengers.
Some of the injured were trapped in the wreckage for over six hours.
21 passengers were killed in the crash which reduced the train to wreckage.

How many died: 21 (47 injured)

A commission of inquiry found that at the time of the derailment the express was travelling at over 70 kilometres an hour, more than twice the speed it should have been moving when it came to the bend.
The commission also found that the driver was responsible for the derailment of the train because of the dangerous speed and reckless driving. He was found to have drunk so much alcohol that his driving ability and judgement was affected.
The driver was charged and found guilty of manslaughter.