Friends of the Rail Forum

Explosion on SCNF (4-8-2) No.241P-17 Seriously injured Engineer& Fireman

samfp1943
Trains Posted: Wed, Aug 31 2011 5:09 PM

Intriguing story from the TRAINS Newswire of 31 August 2011

Headline from article: "Two injured in French steam locomotive accident"

FTA:"...LA RAVOIRE, France – Two people suffered serious burns Aug. 28 when steam was released into the cab of former SNCF 4-8-2 No. 241P-17, Ledauphine.com reports..."

Further FTA: "...The two most seriously injured were the engineer and an SNCF technician. The locomotive was being turned before returning to Aix les Bains for its return passenger trip. The engine is currently in the Chambery depot while investigations continue..."

Accidents are not too common with these older steam locomotives ( Last I remember was a catastrophic boiler explosion on the Strasurg RR several years back.) So I was interested in how this had happened. According to the article,"steam was released into the cab of the 241P-17, injuring the fireman and a 'technician from SCNF' (?)"

This was no ordinary locomotive it was a large 4-8-2 ( said to be one of the largest, operational steam engines in Europe), and was recently outshopped after a renovation that took 13 years.

Curious I checked out the link mentioned in the story : http://www.ledauphine.com/

Link to article (is in French/ with pictures):

http://www.ledauphine.com/savoie/2011/0 ... -en-images

Requested a Google translation, and got the article with some photos of the Steam engine. It looked pretty good, and was definitely not catastrophically damaged externally. ( see photo)

Strangely, this was the information from the translation of the link : (DELETED COPYWRITE Material to comply with Forum rules--samfp1943)

Sunday at 16:45 in Savoy, there was an incident in the old steam locomotive of the Association of Railway Creusot.

There were 10 volunteers on board of the association of Saone et Loire, all passionate about trains. 8 were burned, including two seriously.

"There were Ten people in the Cab while the locomotive was being turned for its return trip!" wITH ALL TEN BEING INJURED (Brned/scalded(?) Two seriously. Amazing!

There have to be more details to this story.

NOTE TO ADD: Additional sources.

The linked site listed above has apparently moved the information referencing the accident with 412P17 locomotive.

here is a site with information in French : For those that speak the language.
http://www.creusot-infos.com/article.ph ... e=&order=0

It is rare that an accident Sunday afternoon has caused significant injuries and burns in Savoy, for eight people who were in the locomotive 241P17 or in its immediate environment.

For some reason that investigations by the SNCF and by the National Gendarmerie shall determine, an explosion occurred in the boiler of the famous steam locomotive, the recall, was the biggest rail rehabilitation project in Europe.

As she does regularly from spring to autumn The 241P17 was gone, that Sunday morning in the direction of Aix-les-Bains, for now, traditional travel called "The Savoy Express Steam." A trip for which the association of Railways Creusot had, so to speak, is full of travelers.

The trip provided for its participants a boat cruise on Lake of Aix-les-Bains, with a visit to the beautiful Abbey Hautecombe; Or a discovery of old boats.

Started at 7:35 at Le Creusot, travelers should arrive at Aix-les-Bains at 12:37. They had to start from the spa town at 18:08.

It was around 4:30 p.m., in the commune of Saint-Baldoph between Montmélian and Chambery, the accident occurred, with an explosion in the boiler and, according to our information, projections of water.

Ten people were in the steam locomotive or nearby. According to a preliminary assessment that has been provided by the departmental fire and rescue of the Savoy, there are three serious injuries and five injured lighter. Two people were injured.

Of the three serious injuries that have been rescued by firefighters of Savoy and physicians SMUR Chambery, one was evacuated by helicopter to the hospital burns unit in Lyon. The injured, including two serious injuries, were transported to the Hospital of Chambery.

Olivier wrote:Yes ! You're right.

A few days ago, the largest steam locomotive still in service in Europe, the 241 P 17, had a boiler problem. A little smoke tube crashed, when the boiler was under 17 bars pressure.

I'll go tomorrow in Chambery, where the loco is parked, to exactly determine the conditions of the problem.

Yann JANAUDY, my friend, the driver, was seriously injured by steam projection inside the cab, coming from the firebox. He is still in the Hospital, in the city of LYON. It is said that as soon as the problem occured, Yann closed the regulator and engaged emergency braking, before jumping out the cab. Due to this action, he has also multiple injuried bones and doctors didn't get exactly, at the time I called the hospital, the entire idea of the matter. Moraly, Yann is at the top.

The SNCF pilot, one of my collegues, was also seriously injuried by steam projection.

10 poeple were on the footplate at that time. Except Yann and the SNCF pilot, 6 more were injured, but ot seriously.

According to me, as the loco warms up and down each time it runs, the boiler tends to expend and retract too much. This way, it involves mechanical forces on the boiler tubes.