Two passenger trains collided in Halle, Belgium, when one driver failed to stop at a red signal, resulting in 19 deaths and 171 injuries.
Halle train collision
The Halle train collision was a collision between two NMBS/SNCB passenger trains carrying a combined 250 to 300 people in Buizingen, in the municipality of Halle, Flemish Brabant, Belgium, on 15 February 2010. The crash occurred in snowy conditions at 08:28 CET (07:28 UTC), during rush hour, on railway line 96 (Brussels–Quévy) about 12 kilometres (7.5 mi) from Brussels between P-train E3678 from Leuven to Braine-le-Comte and IC-train E1707 from Quiévrain to Liège. A third train was able to come to a stop just in time. The collision killed 19 people and injured 171, making it the deadliest rail crash in Belgium in over fifty years.
Halle, Belgium
Halle is a Belgian city and municipality in the Halle-Vilvoorde district (arrondissement) of the province of Flemish Brabant. It is located on the Brussels–Charleroi Canal and on the Flemish side of the language border that separates Flanders and Wallonia. Halle lies on the border between the Flemish plains to the North and the undulating Brabant lands to the South. The city also borders on the Pajottenland to the west. It is about 22 km (14 mi) southwest of Brussels. The official language of Halle is Dutch, as in the rest of Flanders.
Signal passed at danger
A signal passed at danger (SPAD) is an event on a railway where a train passes a stop signal without authority. This is also known as running a red, in the United States as a stop signal overrun (SSO) and in Canada as passing a stop signal. SPAD is defined by Directive 2014/88/EU as any occasion when any part of a train proceeds beyond its authorised movement. Unauthorised movement means to pass:
- a trackside colour light signal or semaphore at danger, or an order to STOP where a Train Protection system (TPS) is not operational,
- the end of a safety related movement authority provided in a TPS,
- a point communicated by verbal or written authorisation laid down in regulations,
- stop boards (buffer stops are not included) or hand signals.