Mugunghwa Train Derailment at Yeongdeungpo Station Caused by Rail Damage

Amid the Mugunghwa train derailment accident, Korail emergency recovery team members are carrying out restoration work on the tracks near Yeongdeungpo Station in Seoul on the 7th. Photo by Jinhyung Kang aymsdream@

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Min-young] It has been confirmed that the rail was already damaged before the Mugunghwa train that derailed at Yeongdeungpo Station on the afternoon of the 6th entered the station.

The Aviation and Railway Accident Investigation Board (ARAIB) announced on the 9th, "Through the forward CCTV footage of the accident train and the impact marks on the wheels, it was confirmed that the tongue rail at the track switch in the accident section was already damaged before the accident train entered the accident section."

Immediately after the accident, ARAIB conducted an initial investigation by inspecting the accident vehicle, debris, and rail condition, and securing and analyzing operation records, radio transcripts, and CCTV footage.

As a result of analyzing the forward CCTV footage of the accident train and the impact marks on the wheels, ARAIB confirmed that the tongue rail at the track switch was already damaged before the accident train entered the accident section. The tongue rail is a rail that allows the train to change tracks at a switch point, functioning by attaching and detaching from the main rail to form the track.

However, since the forward CCTV footage of the preceding KTX train, which passed through the accident section 4 minutes before the accident train, did not identify any damage to the tongue rail, ARAIB judged that the partial damage to the tongue rail occurred as the preceding train passed.

Based on the initial investigation results, ARAIB issued an 'Emergency Safety Recommendation' to Korea Railroad Corporation at 10 p.m. on the 8th, which is issued when urgent safety measures are required due to problems discovered during the accident investigation process.

ARAIB plans to clearly identify and announce the cause of the accident by focusing on investigating the cause of the rail damage through fracture surface analysis and material testing of the damaged tongue rail.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.