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Taunton Train FireThe fire in a sleeping car train at Taunton on July 6, 1978, killed 12 people and had far-reaching effects for British Rail. Background The vehicle involved was no. W2437, which was built in 1960. At this time, trains in the UK were mostly hauled by steam locomotives, which provided steam for heating passenger accommodation. Diesel locomotives of the period were fitted with boilers so that they could be used with existing coaches. However, with steam locomotives gone by the 1970s, and with boilers proving unreliable and expensive to maintain, the decision was made to change to electric heating. W2437 was converted in 1976; an electric heater being installed in the vestibule. The 22:30 service from Penzance to Paddington on July 5, 1978 was scheduled to pick up two sleeping cars at Plymouth; this arrangement was so that passengers joining the train there could go to bed without having to wait for the main service to arrive at around midnight. The main store for bed linen on the Plymouth service was at Old Oak Common depot near London Paddington. Used bedding from Plymouth used to be transported in the guards van of the Plymouth portion, but in 1977 that vehicle was removed from the formation. Instead, the dirty linen was stacked plastic bags in the vestibule of W2437, against the heater. From then onwards, it was only a matter of time until a serious accident occurred. Events When the main train coupled up to the Plymouth portion, the heater in W2437 was turned on, and the bags of linen began to heat up. As they smouldered they began to give off toxic gases, including carbon monoxide. Unfortunately the ventilation system drew fresh air from the vestibule, and the gases were sucked into the system and into each berth. A major fire developed and the train was stopped near Taunton, Somerset, but most victims were already dead from carbon monoxide poisoning. A twelfth died from pneumonia nine months later, having never regained consciousness. Consequences Initial reports showed that fire crews had difficulty during the rescue operation because doors on the train were locked. This was against the Rules, but it was commonplace for attendants to lock the end doors of the pair of coaches that they were responsible for. This meant that attendants could greet passengers on arrival, and it helped to keep out intruders. Following this discovery, BR made it absolutely clear that all doors were to be left unlocked at all times. The Taunton fire occurred just as new mark 3 sleeping cars were at the design stage. The decision was taken to install state-of-the art fire prevention measures including sophisticated warning systems, fire retardant materials, multilingual warning placards and revised emergency procedures. The old mark 1 cars like were phased out by the early 1980s, and so far the mark 3s have had an excellent safety record. See Also External link BBC News: On This Day: Eleven die in sleeper train inferno - has a report and video of both the incident and the subsequent inquiry.
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