1959 Meldrim Trestle Disaster - Meldrim, Georgia
N 32° 08.642 W 081° 22.663
17S E 464378 N 3556463
Twenty-three people were killed on June 28, 1959, when a Seaboard Air Line Freight train plunged off a trestle and into a river.
Waymark Code: WM2DM5
Location: Georgia, United States
Date Posted: 10/16/2007
Views: 145
Meldrim Trestle Disaster occurred at Meldrim, Georgia on June 28, 1959. Involved was a Seaboard Air Line mixed freight train that derailed over the Ogeechee River, loaded butane tank cars from the train plunged into the river below and ruptured. The resulting explosion and fire claimed nearly two dozen lives.
An ICC investigation faulted the railroad for not installing guard rails along the trestle, these undoubtedly would have helped to keep the derailed equipment on the trestle deck, minimizing the risk of a hazardous materials release.
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