Network Rail failed to manage flood risks before track washed away under Greater Anglia train

Network Rail has been criticised for failing to properly manage flood risks after a passenger train ran on to a washed-out section of track.

Dramatic video footage captured the flood waters gushing under a damaged section of train line, leaving tracks suspended in mid-air, only metres from a train that came to a stop just in time.

It happened at 7.45am as the Norwich to Lowestoft train, operated by Greater Anglia, was travelling between Reedham and Haddiscoe stations in Norfolk on 30 January last year.

A new report by the Rail Accident Investigation Branch has called for the Environment Agency and Network Rail to work together more effectively to ensure that railway‑related flood risk is managed in Haddiscoe - something that they said is not currently being done. 

• Watch drone footage from Network Rail of the washed out track

The report said that the train, which was crewed by a driver and a guard, was carrying five passengers. 

The driver had seen that the track was flooded ahead of the train and so brought it to a stand. 

Once the train had stopped, the driver noticed that the ballast was washing away under the train. 

While the driver was preparing to drive back towards Reedham, the situation worsened and a section of ballast washed away, leaving a large void under the track on which the train was standing. 

As the driver moved the train it started to lean over and the driver therefore made the decision that it was too dangerous to continue moving the train, and they and the guard evacuated the five passengers.

RAIB’s investigation found that unusually high water levels existed on the day of the incident due to a combination of tidal surge and tidal locking. 

Low spots in the flood defences next to the track then allowed this water to enter the railway.

The train was not stopped from entering the flooded section because Network Rail was not aware that water was entering the railway, said investigators.

The report found that the Environment Agency’s management of flooding risk in the area did not account for - and was not required to account for - the impact of localised flooding on the railway, and that Network Rail was not effectively managing the risks to its assets and services associated with third party flood defences. 

It also said that a possible underlying factor was that no joint strategy was in place to protect the railway from flooding, due to the Environment Agency and Network Rail not effectively collaborating.

As well as calling for more railway-related flood risk management, the RAIB has said that Network Rail must improve its interaction with organisations responsible for tidal flood defences in England and Wales to prevent such an incident happening again. 

A Network Rail spokesperson said: "We welcome the RAIB report about the washout at Haddiscoe.

"Our teams have already taken several steps to reduce the risk of a similar incident happening again, including installing a tidal gauge at Reedham, which allows us to view water levels in real time and take action if necessary.

"We have also reviewed our processes so that operations, maintenance and structures teams are kept informed of potential tidal events, and have reinstated 50m of piling in the affected area.

"We will closely review the RAIB recommendations and take further action if required. In the face of a changing climate, we are working hard to keep running a railway that is safe and reliable, whatever the weather."

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