It was a pretty place, the rail bridge over the river was
framed by trees, with a view of Mt Ruapehu off to the side. But back on 1953 on
Christmas Eve, it was the site of carnage, now known as the Tangiwai Rail
Disaster. The bridge over the Wangaehu River had been swept away just before
the Wellington to Auckland Overnight Express pulled by engine KA 949 was due to
cross. This occurred when the ice wall holding in the crater lake on top of Mt
Ruapehu collapsed, sending a torrent of water rushing down the mountain side
into the river. 151 people died that terrible night.
Tangiwai today
Memorial at Tangiwai
During that dark night when so many people died, Arthur Ellis
was a hero. Knowing that the bridge had been washed away, he stood on the side
of the track, desperately waving his torch in an effort to stop the express.
After watching in horror as the engine and five carriages had crashed into the
flooded river, Mr Ellis with the guard, entered the sixth carriage which was
balancing precariously on the edge of the bank. This carriage too toppled into
the river and was swept downstream. Using his heavy torch, Mr Ellis broke a
window and all surviving passengers escaped from the partially submerged
carriage. Mr Ellis later received the George Medal, awarded to civilians for
acts of bravery.
As a young child, I can remember listening to the radio as name
after name of all those who died in the disaster were read out. It made quite
an impression to my young mind, but of course this sort of news reporting would
not happen these days.
A train was due, so we waited expectantly, listening as the
rumble of the engine and clacking of the wheels got louder. Our cameras were at
the ready, and we started clicking – hoping that we all got the perfect shot.
Not a passenger train, but a freight train pulled by a diesel engine slowly
trundled over the bridge.
Freight train crossing at Tangiwai
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