Sheriff: Stonehaven derailment avoidable had drain been built correctly
A sheriff's fatal accident inquiry determination found the August 2020 Carmont derailment near Stonehaven, which killed three people, could have been avoided had the drain been built to its design. She made no recommendations, saying the RAIB's 20 had covered the ground.
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The story, neutrally told
Centre · 2A sheriff has concluded that the August 2020 train derailment at Carmont, near Stonehaven in Aberdeenshire, which killed three people, could have been avoided if a drain had been built correctly. BBC NewsN “A train derailment which resulted in the deaths of three men could have been avoided if a drain had been built correctly, a sheriff has concluded.” Read at BBC News ↗ Evening StandardN “could have been avoided if a drain had been built correctly, a sheriff has found.” Read at Evening Standard ↗ Centre · 2The dead were driver Brett McCullough, 45, conductor Donald Dinnie, 58, and passenger Christopher Stuchbury, 62; the fatal accident inquiry (FAI) heard all three suffered "unsurvivable" blunt force injuries, and the other six people aboard were injured. Evening StandardN “A fatal accident inquiry (FAI) into the incident heard all three had suffered multiple “unsurvivable” blunt force injuries.” Read at Evening Standard ↗ BBC NewsN “There were only nine people on the train due to Covid pandemic restrictions at the time. The six survivors were injured.” Read at BBC News ↗ Centre · 2The 06:38 Aberdeen to Glasgow service was halted for more than two hours by a landslip further down the line, then authorised to return; at about 9.37am, travelling at around 73mph, it struck a washout of debris from the drain after intense rain, derailed and hit the parapet of bridge 325. Evening StandardN “At about 9.28am the train was authorised to return to Stonehaven, and struck the “washout” from the drain at about 9.37am.” Read at Evening Standard ↗ BBC NewsN “The train was travelling at about 73mph when it struck debris on the track, derailed, and collided with a bridge parapet.” Read at BBC News ↗
Centre · 1In her written determination, the sheriff found the drain was not constructed in accordance with its design and so could not cope with the surface water; it was built by Carillion in two phases in 2011 and 2012 and deviated from the design in "a number of respects", including piping, materials and an added "bund", or ridge. Evening StandardN “She said the drain, which was built in two phases in 2011 and 2012, had deviated from the design in “a number of respects”.”““The drain was not constructed/installed in accordance with the design.” Read at Evening Standard ↗ Centre · 2She identified precautions that "might realistically have avoided the accident": a drain built to design, "as built" drawings prepared and given to Network Rail, and Network Rail following its own standards requiring such drawings. BBC NewsN “found there were precautions which could have been taken which "might realistically have avoided the accident"” Read at BBC News ↗ Evening StandardN “She said Carillion failed to prepare “as built” drawings of the finished drain and provide them to Network Rail” Read at Evening Standard ↗ Centre · 2She also found a defect in a system of work, namely Network Rail's oversight and management of the drain's construction and its failure to ensure it was built properly to the design drawings. BBC NewsN “there was a defect in a system of work - namely, Network Rail's oversight and management of the construction of the drain” Read at BBC News ↗ Evening StandardN “Network Rail had “failed to ensure” the drain was constructed properly” Read at Evening Standard ↗
Centre · 2The sheriff made no recommendations in her 199-page determination, saying the Rail Accident Investigation Branch (RAIB) had already made 20 "comprehensive and wide-ranging" recommendations, most of them implemented and the rest being progressed. BBC NewsN “Sheriff Johnston did not make any recommendations in her 199-page determination.” Read at BBC News ↗ Evening StandardN “She noted that the “vast majority” of these have already been implemented, and that the remaining ones are being “actively progressed”.” Read at Evening Standard ↗ Centre · 1She said she was satisfied the issues had been or were being addressed, noted a "significant cultural shift" at Network Rail towards treating rainfall as a hazard, and described greater use of helicopter and drone surveys and better record-keeping since the crash. BBC NewsN “There has been a significant cultural shift within Network Rail since this derailment in its understanding the impact of weather and in particular, viewing rainfall as a hazard to railway operations.”“Network Rail now made far greater use of aerial surveys carried out primarily by helicopter, but also by drones” Read at BBC News ↗ Centre · 2Network Rail was fined £6.7 million in 2023 after admitting health and safety failings, including maintenance and inspection failures and not warning the driver the track was unsafe or telling him to reduce speed; Carillion had gone into compulsory liquidation in January 2018. BBC NewsN “It admitted a number of maintenance and inspection failures before the crash, as well as failing to warn the driver that part of the track was unsafe, or tell him to reduce his speed.” Read at BBC News ↗ Evening StandardN “Carillion went into compulsory liquidation in January 2018.” Read at Evening Standard ↗
Centre · 2Network Rail Scotland managing director Liam Sumpter said the company had made significant changes to how it manages severe weather risk; ScotRail's chief operating officer David Ross said nobody there would forget the accident; and Crown Office legal director Laura Buchan said the sheriff concluded the measures had addressed the safety issues identified. Evening StandardN ““We have made significant changes to how we manage the risk of severe weather since the accident and to increase the resilience of Scotland’s railway.””““Nobody at ScotRail will ever forget the accident at Carmont” Read at Evening Standard ↗ BBC NewsN “concluded that these measures have addressed the safety issues identified during the inquiry.” Read at BBC News ↗ Centre · 1Unions responded too: the RMT backed every recommendation on drainage, earthworks and weather forecasting and supported removing the old intercity rolling stock involved, while Aslef Scottish organiser Kevin Lindsay called the failings of Network Rail and Carillion "a staggering level of governance and corporate failure". Evening StandardN “We also support the removal of the ancient intercity fleet of rolling stock involved in this crash as it is clearly not up to modern standards.”“represent a staggering level of governance and corporate failure that must never happen again.” Read at Evening Standard ↗
Every sentence links to the reporting it rests on. The pill in front of each says where its sources sit: Left, Centre or Right when one side supplies at least half of them, Mixed when they are evenly split. The number is how many outlets it cites.
Left0 outlets
No left outlet in our sources has covered this story yet.
Centre2 outlets
- Framing
- Both outlets lead with the sheriff's finding that the drain's faulty construction made the derailment avoidable, then set out the determination's detail, the absence of recommendations and official reactions.
- Emphasis
- BBC stresses the sheriff's list of precautions, Network Rail's cultural shift and the driver's exchange with the signaller; the Evening Standard stresses Carillion's deviations from the design, the timeline of the crash and union statements.
- Leaves out or plays down
- The Standard omits the signaller exchange and the RAIB's 2022 report date; the BBC omits the union reactions, Carillion's liquidation and the drain's construction dates.
- For example
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“A train derailment which resulted in the deaths of three men could have been avoided if a drain had been built correctly, a sheriff has concluded.” — BBC News
“The failings of Network Rail and their contractor Carillion, identified by the RAIB report and supported by the FAI determination” — Evening Standard
Right0 outlets
No right outlet in our sources has covered this story yet.
What every side reports
- Three people died in the 12 August 2020 derailment at Carmont near Stonehaven.
- The sheriff found the derailment could have been avoided had the drain been built to its design.
- The sheriff made no recommendations, relying on the RAIB's 20 recommendations.
- Network Rail was fined £6.7 million in 2023.
Where accounts differ
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Sheriff's surname
- Centre
- The BBC spells it Johnston; the Evening Standard spells it Johnson.
Left0 articles
No coverage yet.
Centre4 articles
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Derailment could have been avoided if drain built correctly, sheriff finds
Neutral Straight report of the determination with extensive quotation from the sheriff and from Network Rail, ScotRail, the Crown Office and the RMT and Aslef unions.
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Fatal Stonehaven train derailment could have been avoided if drain built correctly, says sheriff
Neutral Straight report of the determination stressing the precautions identified, Network Rail's changes since the crash and the lack of new recommendations, with links to related coverage.
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Right0 articles
No coverage yet.
- 4 Nov 12:30 First Evening StandardN Derailment could have been avoided if drain built correctly, sheriff finds
- 4 Nov 12:30 First BBC NewsN Fatal Stonehaven train derailment could have been avoided if drain built correctly, says sheriff
- 4 Nov 13:27 +57m Evening StandardN Fatal derailment ‘will feel like yesterday’ to those affected, says union boss
- 4 Nov 17:44 +5h 15m Evening StandardN Stonehaven train crash ‘will feel like yesterday’ to families, says union boss
Times are when each article was published, or when we first saw it if the outlet gave no time.
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