MERSEYRAIL GUARD IMPRISONED: FIVE YEARS FOR MANSLAUGHTER
MERSEYRAIL GUARD IMPRISONED: FIVE YEARS FOR MANSLAUGHTER
At 23:29 hrs on 22 October 2011, 16 year old Georgia Varley was struck and killed by the train she had left 30 seconds earlier. She was leaning against the train as it began to move out of the station and when she fell, the platform edge gap was wide enough for her to fall through and onto the track. Her post-mortem toxicology report recorded a blood alcohol concentration nearly three times the UK legal drink drive limit.
The guard dispatched the train while the young person was leaning against it. The RAIB concluded it is possible that he did this because he had seen her but expected her to move away before the train moved or that he looked briefly in her direction but did not see her or that he did not see her because his attention was on his control panel and a large group of people on the platform.
By the time the guard warned the young person to stand back she had been leaning against the train for approximately eleven seconds. It is not known when the guard saw her during this time or, if he saw her, whether he delayed taking action in the expectation that she would move away. Platform video camera footage shows him warning her to stand back in the moments before the train departs and it is likely he did this because he thought that it would be immediately effective and because he had no direct and immediate way to stop the train.
© Crown copyright 2012
To read the detailed report of this incident click here:
https://www.gov.uk/raib-reports/fatal...
http://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/news/l...
A dramatisation based on similar events is availble here: • IS IT EVER SAFE TO DEPART
Although this incident occurred with a guard on the train, having a guard present is still safer than relying on one person looking at mirrors or multiple CCTV screens as with Driver Only Operation (DOO). With driver only trains becoming the preferred method of operation for Train Operating Companies (TOCs) to operate their services the risk of events like these becoming more frequent is increased.
Remember "DOO is safe"
#keeptheguardonthetrain
Original video by 390 052 Virgin Knight includes footage from BBC News and remains copyright of the BBC it is presented here for education and evaluation purposes only.