Landowner 'exonerated' in report

Train was derailed by boulder on track

A County Londonderry landowner accused by Translink of being responsible for a train crash has said he hopes the operator will apologise for holding him responsible.

Her Majesty's Railway Inspectorate has been investigating the accident which happened at Downhill near Castlerock on 4 June 2002.

The Londonderry to Belfast train was derailed and six people were injured when boulders from a nearby cliff ended up on the line.

It had been claimed that the crash was the result of a series of unlikely events but in his report, the Railways Inspector concluded that, in fact, the rock falls from the cliff at Downhill could have been foreseen.

The injured, including the driver, were treated in hospital after the incident.

The driver, who suffered leg wounds, was the most seriously injured.

Twenty-two passengers and two crew were on board the three carriages at the time of the crash.

The report concludes that rock falls from the cliffs at Downhill were foreseeable Gerald Kerr Railway Inspectorate Report conclusions

On Wednesday, Gerald Kerr of Her Majesty's Railway Inspectorate, found there were a number of management deficiencies in Northern Ireland Railways which were contributory factors in the accident.

Translink initially blamed Danny O'Kane for the rail crash, as the boulder which caused the crash had fallen from a cliff which he owns above the railway.

Mr O'Kane said he felt "exonerated" by the report into the derailment, which made serious safety recommendations to Translink.

"It wasn't very nice being blamed for something which could have been a very serious accident.

"I had that hanging over me for a year. I was blamed less than a week after the accident.

"I'm not even expecting an apology from them, because going by the way they acted immediately after the crash and the way they have reacted to the report, I can't see it."

Railway inspector Gerald Kerr: Management deficiencies raised

The report said the risk of a rock falling from the Downhill Slope and resulting in a derailment, either directly or indirectly, had not been properly evaluated by Northern Ireland Railways prior to the derailment.

Further incidents of rock fall will occur in the Downhill area and present a risk of injury particularly to residents, and to a lesser extent, road and rail users, the report added.

Mr Kerr said the cliffs should be regularly checked in the future for signs of danger.

"The report concludes that rock falls from the cliffs at Downhill were foreseeable and that further rock fall will occur in the future which will pose a risk to residents and to a lesser extent road and rail users," Mr Kerr said.

"It is clear that, notwithstanding the injuries sustained in this derailment it was only by chance that a much more serious incident did not occur.

"Whilst the risk of rock fall at Downhill remains I urge the various parties to work together and take effective action to reduce the risks of a further rock fall event causing injury," said Mr Kerr.

Politicians have called on Translink to apologise for blaming Mr O'Kane.

However, Translink says issues of legal liability were not addressed in the report, and that process is continuing.