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stations nor the trains were equipped with radio, and there were no further signals in between the trains. The signalmen were powerless to stop the trains. Faced with a now-inevitable crash, the
Dahlerau signalman phoned the emergency services and told them what was about to happen. Ambulances, firefighters and police were promptly sent from Radevormwald, Wuppertal and Solingen. The rescue effort was hindered by the inaccessibility of the accident site on a hillside and by parents who had waited for the train at Radevormwald station and had now come to search for their children, as well as onlookers who were attracted by the rescue effort. Thanks to quick rescue and medical treatment, 25 people survived despite severe injuries, but 41 pupils, two teachers, a mother and two railway staff died. A single pupil was the only person to escape uninjured.
487:, others consider the continuous dealing with the events as a lack or failure of coming to terms with it. As it was not yet common in the 1970s to offer psychological counselling for those involved in the accident, i.e. survivors, next of kin and rescue workers, and as the victims of the event were all local people (contrary to other large-scale accidents, where the geographical distribution of victims usually is less shallow), some unique behaviour patterns can be observed in Radevormwald. Most citizens know about the accident, and many had relatives or friends who were involved in the accident in some way. People who lost family members become aggressive towards those who survived, damaging the socio-psychological climate of the small town. It has been reported that some people, now in their 20s, suffer from
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452:. Public life came to a halt on that day, as shops closed and train service on the railway line was suspended during the funeral. Condolences arrived from places as far as France and Great Britain. An uncle of a pupil who died in the rail accident suffered a heart attack due to the hot weather and later died.
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A crisis squad was established at the
Radevormwald town hall. Due to the high body count, the dead were laid out in the Bredderstraße gymnasium. Some of the funeral homes that were asked to supply coffins at night time first thought they were receiving prank calls due to the supposed improbability of
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Since 1989, an initiative exists to establish a museum service on the line. The initiative has purchased part of the former railway line in 1994, including the station of
Dahlerau and the place where the incident took place. The line only continues unto a point a few kilometres south of the station;
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The signalman at
Dahlerau tried to stop the departing freight train by running alongside it and giving emergency signals, but failed to get the driver's attention. He then immediately telephoned the signalman at Beyenburg to try and stop the passenger train, but it had already left. Neither of the
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as normal and proceeded slowly into the station, expecting the signalman's instructions. Although not strictly necessary according to the rules, the signalman declared that he showed a red hand lamp to the approaching freight train to make absolutely sure it would stop (according to the rules, the
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already set for the passenger train; the points' seal, which ruptures in such an event, was later found to be missing. About 800 metres (2,600 ft) north of the station, on a curve, both trains collided. The motor coach of the two-car special train was compacted to one third of its length and
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Radevormwald was a small town with a population of about 20,000, and the effects of the accident were devastating on its population. An entire year of pupils was wiped out, and virtually everyone was affected directly or indirectly. Most of the dead teenage pupils were laid to rest in a separate
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The legal proceedings investigating the cause of the accident carried on for a year. The exact sequence of events was never determined, as the
Dahlerau signalman died in a car accident shortly after the train crash. It was proven that the car accident was not caused by the signalman, ruling out
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As a consequence of the incident, the
Deutsche Bundesbahn removed the coloured lens from the hand lamps, which could previously be switched between showing a green and a red light, to avoid the risk of confusion. The rules were changed so that a train which was to make an unscheduled stop at a
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Dahlerau station was equipped with entrance signals, which could show aspects Hp 0 (stop) or Hp 1 (proceed); but it lacked exit signals to control departing trains. In place of exit signals, 'stop' boards were provided at the end of the platform. In absence of any other signal, all trains were
368:'stop' board was enough to halt the train). It is unclear what happened next, but the train failed to stop as it was meant to, and departed toward Wuppertal. The driver later claimed that the signalman had displayed a green hand lamp, the signal to pass the 'stop' board. The train trailed the
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engine) was approaching
Dahlerau station in the opposite direction at this time, so the signalmen at Dahlerau and Beyenburg agreed that the freight should stop at Dahlerau station to let the delayed special pass. In normal operation, the freight train would not stop at Dahlerau.
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station without exit signals had to be stopped at the entry signal before it being allowed into the station. The accident also provoked criticism of the lightweight construction of the railbus, which dated back to the 1950s. Their replacements, the
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obliged to stop at the board to await instructions; the signalman, however, could show a green hand lamp to an approaching train, which allowed its crew to ignore the stop board. This is what would normally have happened to the freight train.
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suicide. The driver of the freight train, who survived the accident, testified in court that he saw a green light from the signalman's hand lamp, signalling him to pass through the station without stopping.
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After the investigation ended, the damaged railbus was dismantled on
September 1, 1971. The engine of the freight train, which did not suffer major damage, was rebuilt and continued in service until 2001.
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pushed backwards 100 metres (330 ft) by the freight locomotive, which was five times as heavy and whose front wall (without the driver's cab) was 20 centimetres (7.9 in) higher than the railbus.
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40 years after the incident, the railway accident is an often-discussed event in the populace of
Radevormwald, especially around its anniversary. While some regard discussing the topic as
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even though they were not alive at the time of the accident, and would go as far as not using trains at all. This is a behaviour previously observed with children of survivors of the
467:) was placed next to the graves. At first, the inscription was criticised as overly and inappropriately optimistic ("...that they may live"); the complaints later settled down.
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grave on the
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automatic train stop system, were installed at Dahlerau station in 1975. The line from Wuppertal to Radevormwald was closed in 1976.
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railcars that were built from the mid-1970s on, were constructed considerably more sturdily.
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the remaining length of track to Radevormwald was flooded during the construction of the
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633:"Eisenbahn-Kurier Special #43: Die DB 1971" (Document). EK-Verlag, Freiburg.
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416:. As the dispatcher died during the hearings, the case never went to court.
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On the evening of May 27, 1971, shortly after 21:00, a train made up of two
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Accident site, showing the destroyed first coach of the passenger train.
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1971 railway accident in Dahlerau, North Rhine-Westphalia, West Germany
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606:. Bergische Bahnen Förderverein Wupperschiene e.V. Archived from
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533:"Aktuelle Stunde - So wars: 1971 - Zugunglück in Radevormwald"
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328:(units 795 375 + 995 325) on the single-track line between
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Accidents and incidents involving Deutsche Bundesbahn
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In 1972, a stone pillar containing the inscription "
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396:engine, the same type as used on the freight train
285:in Radevormwald. It was the deadliest accident in
657:Bahnen im Bergischen: Das Zugunglück von Dahlerau
289:since its foundation in 1949, surpassed after
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404:Railbus of the model involved in the accident
309:Dahlerau station at the time of the accident.
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559:World Disasters: Tragedies in the Modern Age
561:. Taylor & Francis. 2001. p. 188.
269:accident that occurred on May 27, 1971, in
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109:Learn how and when to remove this message
604:"Die Geschichte "unserer" Wuppertalbahn"
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363:The freight train passed the entrance
479:Graves at Radevormwald cemetery, 2004
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47:adding citations to reliable sources
648:WDR – Aktuelle Stunde vom 27.05.06
332:-Oberbarmen and Radevormwald, the
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815:1970s in North Rhine-Westphalia
324:was running as special service
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489:post-traumatic stress disorder
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583:"v100.de - Fahrzeugportrait"
805:Train collisions in Germany
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825:May 1971 events in Europe
800:Railway accidents in 1971
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724:Railway accidents in 1971
448:and the president of the
283:Geschwister-Scholl-Schule
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58:"Dahlerau train disaster"
650:– includes video footage
381:such a severe accident.
263:Dahlerau train disaster
126:Dahlerau train disaster
750:Dahlerau, West Germany
537:Westdeutscher Rundfunk
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351:(pulled by 212 030, a
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295:Eschede train disaster
172:North Rhine-Westphalia
610:on September 28, 2007
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385:Cause of the accident
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810:1971 in West Germany
680:51.22500°N 7.32222°E
463:37.9, translates as
291:German reunification
168:Oberbergischer Kreis
43:improve this article
756:Salem, Illinois, US
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322:Deutsche Bundesbahn
209:Deutsche Bundesbahn
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301:Timeline of events
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654:(in German)
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614:January 16,
588:January 15,
543:January 15,
414:human error
337: [
315:class VT 95
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794:Categories
746:(11 March)
668:51°13′30″N
514:References
508:Wupper Dam
439:Chancellor
231:Statistics
69:newspapers
758:(10 June)
671:7°19′20″E
493:Holocaust
471:Aftermath
450:Bundesrat
330:Wuppertal
326:Eto 42227
318:railbuses
297:in 1998.
218:Collision
752:(27 May)
432:Funerals
349:Ng 16856
271:Dahlerau
205:Operator
160:Dahlerau
156:Location
99:May 2011
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252:Injured
178:Country
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365:signal
345:Bremen
265:was a
244:Deaths
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223:Cause
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90:JSTOR
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