Santa Fe Derailment: Redondo Junction (site) (Los Angeles, California)

USA / California / Vernon / Los Angeles, California
 railway accident site (derailment, collision, etc), historical layer / disappeared object
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January 22, 1956. Atchison Topeka & Santa Fe RR train #82 southbound to San Diego flips off the tracks at this point while passing through Redondo Junction, killing 30 and injuring another 117. The train consisted of two Budd built Rail Diesel Cars (RDCs), which are essentially self-propelled passenger coaches with a control cab at either end. The RDCs were fairly new to the Santa Fe and engineers complained that they handled differently from conventional trains, especially under acceleration. An ICC report on the investigation into the accident found that the engineer had entered into the curve at a speed much higher than its 15MPH limit. This was also the first major disaster in the LA area covered by live television.

NOTE: There has been substantial track realignment in the Redondo Junction area since the accident. The actual curve where the accident occurred has since been pulled up.

www.lafire.com/famous_fires/560122_SantaFeTrainWreck/01...
Nearby cities:
Coordinates:   34°1'1"N   118°13'29"W

Comments

  • Location is incorrect...the train never made it to this curve, but derailed on the north side of Washington, just opposite the former location of the roundhouse. In photos you can see the train flipped to the east side of the curve, Redondo Junction to the south (the split just below Washington)
  • I was on that train and in that wreck with my mother, father, and brother. I had a head injury from the crash. Age at crash, i was 5.
This article was last modified 11 years ago