Salisbury train crash: Witness says aftermath 'was like a scene out of The Walking Dead'

  • Watch: Eyewitness account of Salisbury train crash aftermath


The aftermath of a train crash in Salisbury has been described as "like a scene from The Walking Dead" by one eyewitness.

Thirteen injured people were taken to hospital after two trains carrying around 100 people collided near the Fisherton Tunnel on Sunday evening (October 31).

All of those injured are now in a stable condition, with just three of the 13 still requiring treatment at Salisbury District Hospital.

Darren Griggs, a local bus driver who lives near to the site, described the sound of the crash as being like "an explosion". He said: "Being firework night, we thought it must be just fireworks going off.

"It wasn't until we went back inside the house and we heard the police helicopter hovering above the house - that's how close we are to the line - we thought 'what's going on?'," he added.

Office of Rail and Road safety inspectors are on site this morning. Credit: PA

When Darren went to see what was happening, he said he felt his "whole house shaking".

"We came outside and there it was - a police helicopter in the sky with its torch on," he told ITV News.

"We were looking around at what the helicopter was doing and noticed through the gaps in the houses the blue lights."

Darren said the aftermath of the crash was like nothing he has ever seen before.

"It was like a scene out of The Walking Dead. It was awful.

"You didn't want to look at the passengers because of what they've gone through, but it was like 'oh my God'. I've never seen that before.

"It was scary. It really was scary.

"You see it on the TV all the time - but not anywhere local like here."



What do we know about the crash?

A GWR service from Portsmouth Harbour to Bristol Temple Meads hit an object in a tunnel on its approach to Salisbury station at around 5pm, causing some of the carriages to derail.

It meant signal was knocked out in the area and, shortly before 7pm, the Bristol-bound train was hit by a service heading from London Waterloo to Honiton.

People have been warned disruption on the railway line could last for days while an investigation is carried out.


  • South Western Railway Managing Director Claire Mann says it's 'too early' to speculate on cause of crash


Office of Rail and Road inspectors are at the scene and working with the Rail Accident Investigation Branch and the British Transport Police to investigate how this incident happened.

"It is too early to speculate on the cause, and our investigation will work to understand the full circumstances," a spokesperson said.

"Our thoughts are with all the passengers that were injured."