Steam Locomotive Firebox Explosion on the Gettysburg Railroad ...

INTRODUCTION
At about 7:20 p.m. on June 16, 1995, the
crownsheet of Gettysburg Passenger Services,
Inc., steam locomotive 1278 failed
while the train was pulling a six-car excursion
train about 15 mph near Gardners,
Pennsylvania. The failure caused fire and
steam to be explosively released through the
firebox door into the locomotive cab, seriously
burning the engineer and two firemen.
The engineer suffered third-degree burns
over 65 percent of his body. None of the 310
passengers or the other crewmembers were
injured.
The cause of this accident was determined
to be the failure of the train operating
crew to maintain a water level in the locomotive
boiler that was sufficient to cover the
crownsheet. Because of the inadequate water
level, the crownsheet overheated and weakened.
When it weakened, it could no longer
withstand the pressure of the steam above it.
The pressure forced a section of the crownsheet
to pull away from its staybolts and
collapse inward; the staybolt holes in the
collapsed section then exposed superheated
water and steam in the boiler to the atmospheric
pressure of the firebox. With the sudden
reduction of pressure in the boiler, the
superheated water flashed instantaneously
and explosively into steam. The investigation
of this accident revealed that those responsible
for maintaining, repairing, and
operating locomotive 1278 lacked the specialized
training and experience that have
long been judged to be prerequisites for the
safe operation of steam-locomotive equipment.
Approximately 150 steam locomotives
are still operated in the United States by
more than 82 organizations. Virtually all of
them are used by tourist railroads, museums,
historical groups, and steam-excursion
groups. Although there are no exact figures
about how many people ride steam-locomotive
trains each year, the Tourist Railway
Association, Inc., (TRAIN) estimates that
approximately 4.8 million people, or the
equivalent of 12 percent of Amtrak’s annual
intercity ridership for 1995, visit tourist
railways, museums, and excursion operations
annually. A significant number of these
people ride trains pulled by steam locomotives.
According to Gettysburg Passenger
Services officials, about 50,000 people
rode Gettysburg Passenger Services
steam trains in 1994—and this is only one of
more than 80 organizations belonging to
TRAIN that use steam-excursion trains.
This accident illustrates the hazards that
are always present in the operation of steam
locomotives. The Safety Board is concerned
that these hazards may be becoming more
significant because Federal regulatory controls
are outdated and because expertise in
operating and maintaining steam locomotives
is diminishing steadily. The Safety
Board believes that the reasons for the explosion
on locomotive 1278, especially
those reasons having to do with deficiencies
in steam-locomotive maintenance and operations,
may not be unique.
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