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Paddington rail disaster remembered 15 years on | Paddington rail disaster remembered 15 years on |
(about 11 hours later) | |
Those bereaved by the Paddington train crash have marked the 15th anniversary of the disaster with a ceremony. | |
They have placed flowers at a memorial site high above the railway line at Ladbroke Grove in west London. | |
Just before 08:10 BST on 5 October 1999, 31 people died when two trains collided almost head-on. | Just before 08:10 BST on 5 October 1999, 31 people died when two trains collided almost head-on. |
The subsequent inquiry found the Thames Trains service travelling from Paddington to Bedwyn in Wiltshire had gone through a red signal. | The subsequent inquiry found the Thames Trains service travelling from Paddington to Bedwyn in Wiltshire had gone through a red signal. |
It then crashed into the London-bound high-speed First Great Western train which had left Cheltenham Spa in Gloucestershire at 06:03. | It then crashed into the London-bound high-speed First Great Western train which had left Cheltenham Spa in Gloucestershire at 06:03. |
The Thames driver, Michael Hodder, 31, and the other train driver, Brian Cooper, 52, were among those killed as the collision led to a fireball in which coach H was burnt out. | The Thames driver, Michael Hodder, 31, and the other train driver, Brian Cooper, 52, were among those killed as the collision led to a fireball in which coach H was burnt out. |
As well as the fatalities, more than 220 people were injured. | As well as the fatalities, more than 220 people were injured. |
'Lives changed' | 'Lives changed' |
Paddington Survivors group chairman Jonathan Duckworth, 56, from Stroud in Gloucestershire, was on the First Great Western train. | |
Father-of-two Mr Duckworth said: "Luckily, I was only in hospital for around 24 hours but then I suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder. | |
"I had to have about 18 months of treatment and was only able after that to take on small, part-time jobs. | "I had to have about 18 months of treatment and was only able after that to take on small, part-time jobs. |
"It was six or seven years before I was able to work full-time again." | "It was six or seven years before I was able to work full-time again." |
The Paddington disaster was followed by fatal rail crashes at Hatfield in Hertfordshire in 2000, at Selby in North Yorkshire in 2001 and at Potters Bar in Hertfordshire in 2002. | The Paddington disaster was followed by fatal rail crashes at Hatfield in Hertfordshire in 2000, at Selby in North Yorkshire in 2001 and at Potters Bar in Hertfordshire in 2002. |
But in the 12 years since, there has only been one passenger death in a rail accident in Britain - 84-year-old Margaret Masson was killed when a Virgin Trains Pendolino derailed on a faulty set of points at Grayrigg in Cumbria in February 2007. | |
Michael Roberts, director-general of the Rail Delivery Group, which speaks on behalf of Network Rail and the train operators, said: "We remember those who lost their lives and all those whose lives were changed as a result of the Paddington crash. | Michael Roberts, director-general of the Rail Delivery Group, which speaks on behalf of Network Rail and the train operators, said: "We remember those who lost their lives and all those whose lives were changed as a result of the Paddington crash. |
"After serious accidents in the early 2000s, changes such as an overhaul of employee training for those doing safety-critical jobs and a better approach to staff working hours have helped improve safety on Britain's railway." | "After serious accidents in the early 2000s, changes such as an overhaul of employee training for those doing safety-critical jobs and a better approach to staff working hours have helped improve safety on Britain's railway." |