Overview
Railway accidents have had a strange fascination for many people for generations. No matter how slight the damage caused or how few casualties are involved, the very fact that a train leaves the railway tracks and ploughs ahead uncontrolled by any guiding rails, fills the imagination with awe and wonder. Sensational headlines appear and people want to know what awful consequences followed, how much worse the accident could have been and, more importantly, why it happened in the first place. Frequently, human frailty is the cause but, as revealed in this book, there are often less obvious reasons. Fatigue, intrigue, overwork, carelessness, stubborn animals, the elements or even the longings of the heart have caused accidents on the railways of Ireland. The selection of crashes and mishaps featured in this book provides a unique insight not only to railway working in Ireland over the past century and a half, but also to the fortitude and ingenuity of Irish people when confronted with unexpected difficulties. The accidents described in the following pages include tragedies such as the Armagh, Curraduff, Cahir and Buttevant disasters; politically-inspired mishaps such as those of the Civil War in Cork and Wexford, or the Sallins Mail Train Robbery; 'acts of God' like those of the Owencarrow Viaduct disaster in Donegal; and lesser known incidents caused by wind, snow, goats, a steam-roller or a love tryst. All have one common feature in that the trains involved came to a sudden and unexpected stop and this led to stories that make for interesting and often fascinating reading.
Full Product Details
Author: Brian Mac Aongusa
Publisher: Columba Books
Imprint: Currach Press
Dimensions:
Width: 17.30cm
, Height: 2.10cm
, Length: 18.80cm
Weight: 0.885kg
ISBN: 9781856079259
ISBN 10: 1856079252
Pages: 192
Publication Date: 10 October 2005
Audience:
General/trade
,
General
Format: Hardback
Publisher's Status: Active
Availability: In Print
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Reviews
MacAongusa's book is a nostalgic look back at a piece of Dublin transportation history.
"""MacAongusa's book is a nostalgic look back at a piece of Dublin transportation history."""
Author Information
Brian Mac Aongusa has lived all his life in south County Dublin and has been keenly interested in railway policy and operation since he first joined the Irish Railway Record Society in 1949. Educated at Colaiste Mhuire and University College Dublin, he pursued a public service career for over forty years in the Department of Finance and RTE, becoming Controller of Programmes, RTE Radio 1 in 1983. This is his third book.
