The Swiss Transportation Safety Investigation Board (STSB) has confirmed that the derailment of a freight train in the Gotthard Base Tunnel last month was caused by a broken wheel.
This content was published on
2 minutes
Keystone-SDA
Русский
ru
К аварии в Готардском тоннеле привело разрушение колеса
The existing train control systems were unable to detect earlier damage to the wheel.
The broken wheel was caused by fatigue cracks in the metal, the STSB wrote in an interim report published on Thursday. Such fatigue cracks grow with continued use until the wheel breaks. The STSB found no evidence of operational defects as a cause of the accident.
According to the current train control systems used on Swiss railway infrastructure, the cracks could not have been discovered. STSB said a crack can only be discovered to a limited extent during technical tensile tests, and they also depend on its size. In addition, cracks can only be found in the visible area of the wheel.
The damage pattern corresponds to a safety warning by the Belgian and Italian supervisory authorities from 2017, STSB said. In 2016 and 2017, several cracks and breaks occurred in similar freight train wheels in Belgium and Italy. Measures were then taken to limit risks during operation and maintenance.
The freight wagon that caused the derailment in the Gotthard Base Tunnel on August 10 belonged to a Zug company. It was the eleventh wagon being pulled by the train. According to STSB, a fragment of the wheel disc broke off about ten kilometres after entering the tunnel. More fragments then came loose.
The axle hung diagonally under the car. The last fragment broke off 17 kilometres into the 57.1-km tunnel. The axle hit and destroyed a switch. The following 16 freight cars then derailed. The train was torn apart between the 13th and 14th wagons and certain wagons ended up on the opposite track.
This news story has been written and carefully fact-checked by an external editorial team. At SWI swissinfo.ch we select the most relevant news for an international audience and use automatic translation tools such as DeepL to translate it into English. Providing you with automatically translated news gives us the time to write more in-depth articles. You can find them here.
If you want to know more about how we work, have a look here, and if you have feedback on this news story please write to english@swissinfo.ch.
External Content
Your subscription could not be saved. Please try again.
Almost finished… We need to confirm your email address. To complete the subscription process, please click the link in the email we just sent you.
Popular Stories
More
Climate change
The international consequences of a glacier-free Switzerland
Is your place of origin, your Heimatort, important to you?
Every Swiss citizen has a Heimatort, a place of origin, but many have never visited theirs. What’s your relationship with your Heimatort? What does it mean to you?
What factors should be taken into account when inheriting Swiss citizenship abroad?
Should there be a limit to the passing on of Swiss citizenship? Or is the current practice too strict and it should still be possible to register after the age of 25?
Trains resume service to Swiss ski resort Zermatt after heavy snowfall
This content was published on
Zermatt can once again be reached by train starting Saturday afternoon. The Alpine holiday resort was inaccessible by land for some time after heavy snowfall last Thursday.
Authorities urge vigilance after heavy snowfall in southern Switzerland
This content was published on
Vigilance remains the order of the day in the southern canton of Valais, despite a stable situation after heavy snow on Thursday, authorities said on Saturday.
Switzerland won’t be spared drug violence: criminal police head
This content was published on
It is only a matter of time before Switzerland, like other countries in Europe, experiences an escalation in drug-related violence, says the head of the Federal Criminal Police.
Handful of Swiss Easter processions take place after inclement weather
This content was published on
Traditional Good Friday processions continue to take place in some municipalities in Switzerland. In Romont, canton Fribourg, for example, the "Pleureuses" marched through the streets.
Great St. Bernard pass between Switzerland and Italy closed due to avalanche
This content was published on
An avalanche forced the closure of the Great St. Bernard pass between Switzerland and Italy on Thursday. The route remains closed to Easter traffic.
‘Pressure will increase on Switzerland to invest more in defence’
This content was published on
Markus Mäder, Switzerland's state secretary for security policy, believes that more cooperation is needed in order to strengthen defence in Europe.
Just one in five Swiss attend a religious service at Easter
This content was published on
Only one in five people in Switzerland attend a religious service during the Easter period or give up meat or alcohol for at least one day of fasting. Around 25% of those polled see Easter primarily as a family holiday, according to the survey.
Major road disruptions continue after heavy snowfall in parts of Switzerland
This content was published on
The snowfall has ended in the southern Swiss canton of Valais, the cantonal emergency services said on Friday. Several roads, however, remain closed.
Swiss businessman gets prison term for asbestos deaths
This content was published on
Stephan Schmidheiny has been sentenced to 9 years and 6 months in prison by the Turin Court of Appeal in a case against the former Eternit executive over deaths linked to asbestos exposure in Italy.
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.
Read more
More
Gotthard Road Tunnel to re-open on Friday evening
This content was published on
The Gotthard Road Tunnel, which was closed on Sunday owing to a damaged ceiling, will be re-opened to traffic at 8pm on Friday.
Damaged train to be removed from Gotthard by end September
This content was published on
The work to evacuate the freight train that crashed in the Gotthard base tunnel on August 10 will continue until the end of September.
Transport chief blames federal railways for Gotthard derailment
This content was published on
As a freight carrier, the Swiss Federal Railways’ cargo division is responsible for the accident in the Gotthard base tunnel.
You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here . Please join us!
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.