Two trains collided in a single-track tunnel in Algeria, killing the driver of one of the trains and injuring four railway workers, one of them severely. One of the trains was transporting fuel. A fire erupted and propagated gradually to the 15 carriages, triggering a chain of explosions, and to the seven carriages of the other train. Rescuers could not get into the tunnel for two days due to extremely high temperatures. 16/08.
A freight train carrying 750 cubic metres of fuel (ten carriages full of diesel and five of petrol) collided with another train in the middle of a 772 m tunnel on 28th February, 2008 in Lakhdaria, Algeria. The train was travelling from Algiers to Bordj Bou Arreridj and the accident occurred in the Thenia-Lakhdaria single-track section in the Ammal tunnel at the east entrance of Lakhdaria gorges in the municipality of Ammal, in the province of Boumerdès, some 40 km west of Bouira and 90 km east of Algiers. The collision was so violent that several carriages derailed. The accident left four railway workers injured and burnt while the driver of one of the trains was reported missing.
The crash caused the blast of a first carriage, which propagated subsequently to the other carriages. Although equipped with safety systems, the fuel tanks did not resist the extreme conditions caused by the impact between the two trains and high temperatures. Witnesses reported having heard about ten blasts. Fires raged out of control for two days. The tunnel does not have an emergency exit and is surrounded by mountainous terrain, making fire-fighting operations virtually impossible. Finally, rescuers were able to enter the tunnel on 1st March once all the fuel was burnt. But 56 hours after the collision, smoke caused by the slow combustion of the wooden sleepers was still escaping from the tunnel mouths.
Eleven days after the accident, three carriages only had been removed from the tunnel and the 19 other carriages were charred and melted wreckage. On 8th March, engineers from Frazer entered the tunnel with substantial logistics means like heavy machinery to clear the way. Also, French contractor Razel was involved, in partnership with Algerian specialists, to find a solution to the difficult clearing work. Visit www.frazer.eu.com and www.razel.fr
The rail line between Algiers and Constantine has been shut down until the removal of the burnt carriages and repairs of the tracks and the tunnel. The line remains closed so far. Freight and passenger traffic between Algiers, Constantine and Annaba has been suspended. It is still not known when the tunnel will reopen nor is when service on the line will return to normal. Double tracking in the area is urgently needed.
The fires caused damage to the masonry structure of the tunnel. In the built part of the tunnel, the masonry is cracked and badly damaged at some places and there are risks of cave-ins and collapse. In the 600 m section through the mountain, high temperatures caused explosive spalling of the rock which covered the track. At the impact point, there are risks of collapse and charred wreckage of carriages incinerated and buried under collapsed rock.
On 1st April, the investigation committee set up by the Algerian national railway company SNTF confirmed that the collision was due to a human error by two employees of Lakhdaria station. The body of the missing train driver had still not been found. 16/08.
