Industry news
Network Rail apologises for death
Posted Fri, 22 Jan 2010
The family of a 52-year-old woman killed after a passenger train hit two cars on a level crossing at the weekend has received a "full and complete" apology from Network Rail.
Jane Harding was airlifted to hospital following the accident in Moreton-on-Lugg, Herefordshire, but later died. Her husband, from Marden in Herefordshire, survived the accident with minor injuries.
A Network Rail statement said the 8.30am Arriva Trains Wales service from Manchester Piccadilly to Milford Haven hit the cars at 10.30am, and it was "most likely to have been due in some way to Network Rail".
Independent investigations into the accident havebeen launched by the British Transport Police, the Rail Accident Investigation Branch, and Network Rail itself, which is responsible for the UK's rail infrastructure.
As well as formally apologising to Mrs Harding's relatives, the statement said: "The purpose of the investigation is to learn exactly what happened and why and it will be completed within the next few weeks.
"The investigations continue apace and will be critical in finding out the causes and will look for ways to prevent anything like it from happening again."
Copyright © Press Association 2010
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