Waterfall rail accident

Waterfall rail accident
Fallen down Tangara G Set train at Waterfall
Details
Date31 January 2003
LocationWaterfall, New South Wales
37 km (23 mi) SW from Sydney
Coordinates34°09′08″S 150°59′41″E / 34.152096°S 150.994830°E / -34.152096; 150.994830
CountryAustralia
LineIllawarra
OperatorState Rail Authority
Incident typeDerailment
CauseDriver lost consciousness due to a myocardial infarction, poorly designed dead-man's switch.
Statistics
Trains1
Deaths7
Injured40

The Waterfall rail accident was a train accident that occurred on 31 January 2003 near Waterfall, New South Wales, Australia. The train derailed, killing seven people aboard, including the train driver, and injuring 40. The accident is notably remembered by systems engineers due to the poorly designed safety systems.