Time approx 9:00 am Rail line TRTA Hibiya Line Date 8 March 2000 Operator Tokyo Metro Trains 2 | Country Japan Type of incident Derailment Total number of deaths 5 Injuries 63 | |
Location Naka-Meguro Station, Tokyo, Japan Similar Mikawashima train crash, Tsurumi rail accident, Amagasaki rail crash, Shigaraki train disaster, China Airlines Flight 140 | ||
The Naka-Meguro train disaster occurred in Japan on 8 March 2000. Five people were killed and 63 were injured when a derailed TRTA Hibiya Line train was sideswiped by a second train near Naka-Meguro Station.
Contents
Accident events
At around 9 a.m. on 8 March 2000, the rearmost car of an eight-car TRTA Hibiya Line (now Tokyo Metro Hibiya Line) train from Kita-Senju to Kikuna derailed on the tight curve immediately before Naka-Meguro Station. The derailed car was then hit by the fifth and sixth cars of an eight-car Tobu Railway train travelling in the opposite direction from Naka-Meguro to Takenotsuka.
Factors
It is generally the case that the distance between the tracks less the width of the carriages only allows about 600 mm, so that if a train derails on the same side as the other track, it will almost certainly be foul of the other track, making a collision inevitable. Track circuits do not detect derailments, so it requires prompt action from the train crew to warn the opposing train.