Quick response by the Remote Control Center staff in Rijeka prevented a collision between a passenger train and a freight train full of fuel. HŽ Cargo train driver suspended, Minister Butković demands extraordinary inspection.
Near the Škrljevo station on Sunday, a serious railway accident was narrowly avoided. Thanks to the composure of HŽ Infrastructure staff, a collision between a passenger train carrying 45 passengers and a freight train loaded with fuel was prevented in just twenty seconds, as Novi list has learned from sources within the company.
According to available information, the driver of the freight train operated by HŽ Cargo, which was traveling from the direction of Rijeka, failed to stop the train at a red signal. In doing so, he also damaged a switch that was supposed to redirect him to a siding, where he was to wait for the passenger train coming from Zagreb to pass.
The train's automatic stop device activated and brought the train to a halt, but the driver, for reasons still undetermined, restarted the train without contacting the relevant authorities. His attempt to continue was noticed in time by HŽ Infrastructure staff, who alerted the Remote Control Center in Rijeka.
The duty officer at the center reacted instantly and without hesitation cut off the electrical power supply on that section of the track. Both trains came to a stop just a few hundred meters apart. Sources from HŽ claim that a delay of only twenty seconds in cutting the power would have made the collision inevitable.
The freight train was carrying tanker cars full of highly flammable motor fuel that had been loaded at the Rijeka Oil Refinery. A collision with the passenger train operated by HŽ Passenger Transport could have had catastrophic consequences.
HŽ Cargo confirmed on Sunday that the train driver has been suspended from his duties. On Monday, they further revealed that this employee had previously received a warning regarding his work obligations, but that warning was not related to train operations or railway safety.
"If the final report confirms that this was a personal failure by the employee, this includes termination of the employment contract," HŽ Cargo stated.
Following the recent train collision near Križevci and this incident near Škrljevo, the Minister of Maritime Affairs, Transport and Infrastructure, Oleg Butković, has requested an extraordinary inspection of the railway operators HŽ Cargo and HŽ Passenger Transport, as well as the infrastructure manager HŽ Infrastructure. The Director of the Railway Safety Agency, Želimir Delač, immediately initiated the inspection.
Although HŽ Infrastructure staff prevented a tragedy with their quick response, the company's management did not allow them to make public statements, citing that the investigation is still ongoing.
