Two miles north of Kendal station, where the railway curves north and starts the run for Carlisle, lies some of the most beautiful countryside in England. On Friday night, as the time approached 8.30pm, it was at its most ugly.
Rain came down horizontally in the darkness. The 5.15pm from Euston was making good time. The driver, Ian Black, eased the Pendolino forward to 'trackline' speed, the maximum allowed on this stretch of track - 95mph.
Then came disaster. A loud bump, followed by a shuddering and swaying as the train leapt and bucked, its wheels suddenly detached from the rails. It had just traversed some little-used points and been thrown sideways, Black struggling with the controls to keep the engine upright. He managed to hold the train on course for at least half a mile, screeching brakes full on as he tried to keep each of the nine 50-tonne carriages stable. As a result, he managed to reduce the speed dramatically before it crashed, a mess of carriages and the engine twisted back on itself, down a 40ft embankment. Black is now in hospital with a broken neck and other injuries, but has been hailed as a hero. Behind him the passengers were thrown to the floor, across the chairs, over the tables. 'It was like being in a pinball machine,' said one. Only one person died in the crash, but everyone involved said it was a miracle the death toll was not far higher.
As Black desperately fought to keep control, there was chaos and confusion among the 120 passengers in the carriages behind him. Survivors spoke of carriages lurching from side to side and swaying before turning over. Others said there was violent braking and a blinding flash. Ruth Colton said she thought the service was being battered by heavy winds before her carriage flipped over: 'I was just reading a book and it started to get really bumpy, then suddenly it fell.'
