Background
Pernink is a town of 572 people (as of 2021) in the far northwest of Czechia, located in the Karlovy Vary region 81km/50mi north northwest of Pilsen (Czechia), 45km/28mi south of Zwickau (Germany) and just 6km/3.75mi southeast of the German-Czech border at Potůčky/Pachthaus (all measurements in linear distance).
Pernink possesses a small station on the Karlovy Vary–Johanngeorgenstadt railway, a single-tracked unelectrified main line connecting Germany and Czechia on 46.8km/29mi of twisty track as it takes trains through the Ore Mountains. The difficult terrain it navigates has gained the line the nickname “Czech Semmering”, likening it to a pioneering Austrian mountain railway. Opening in 1899 under the Royal Austrian Railways the line was taken over by the Czechoslovak State Railways (ČSD) after WW1, then becoming German in WW2 before being returned to the ČSD, be it only for military use (until 1992). Nowadays the line is operated in cooperation by the Czech national railway (ČD) and German national railway (DB). Trains on the line reach top speeds of just 60kph, with sidings at the stations allowing trains to pass each other.
The Trains Involved
Os 17113 was a regional express passenger service from Johanngeorgenstadt (Germany) to Karlovy Vary (Czechia), provided on the day of the accident by ČD 844 005. The ČD series 844 is a two-car diesel multiple unit made by PESA as the Link II and was introduced into service with the ČD in 2013. Each unit consists of two identical end cars resting on a shared central jacob’s bogie, measuring a total of 43.73m/143ft in lengh at a weight of 84.4 metric tons. Each car is fitted with an MTU diesel engine sending 390kW/523hp to the bogie at the end of the car, enough for the train to reach 120kph/75mph while carrying a driver along with up to 120 passengers in a two-class configuration.
The train cars feature large energy-absorption and crash-protection structures at the ends as a crumple-zone of sorts, fulfilling the highest European crash safety standard. These structures includes anti-climb elements meant to keep another train from mounting the 844’s frame in case of a head-on collision. Their distinctively “angry” design has given them the nickname “Shark”, which the ČD picked up on and branded the series 844 the “RegioShark”. Against original plans the series 844 doesn’t currently hold a registration for Germany (despite near-identical trains also being in service with the German national railway), so they cannot provide cross-border services further into Germany than the border-station of Johanngeorgenstadt.
Serving the opposing connection (Os 71110) was ČD 814 034, a diesel railcar introduced in 2005. The series 814, nicknamed “Regionova”, was created by modernizing series 810 diesel rail cars and their unpowered control cars (series 010), which had been in service since the mid-1970s. Each series 814 measures 28.44m/93ft in length (including the control car) at a total weight of 39.6 metric tons. The trains can carry 84 seated and 105 standing passengers at no more than 80kph/mph, having a power-output of just 242kW/325hp. The modernization focussed on quickly acquiring low-floor trains for regional traffic, speed was not a priority. At the time of the accident the train ran with the control car (914 034) leading. Both trains carried a total of 33 passengers in addition to two drivers.
The Accident
At the time of the accident traffic on the rail line between Karlovy Vary and Johanngeorgenstadt was organized on the principle of direct traffic control. Trains report their arrival at each station via radio to the dispatcher at Nejdek station who tracks positions of each train and individually gives permission for trains to proceeds if the path to the next station is clear. There is no automated train control system to observe train positions and trigger an emergency stop in the event of a train departing a station without permission. Trains between Pernink and Nové Jamry (the next station to the south) are intended to pass each other at Pernink station from Monday to Friday while slightly different scheduling moves the meeting point to Nové Jamry on weekends and holidays.
On Tuesday the 7th of July 2020 Os71110 is travelling northbound through the forest at approximately 50kph/31mph, approaching Pernink station a few minutes behind schedule. At approximately 3:19pm the southbound RegioShark finishes loading and unloading passengers at Pernink station and departs for Nové Jamry, quickly accelerating despite navigating a tight left hand turn. At 3:10pm the RegioShark, now travelling at 47kph/29mph comes around the apex of a long right hand turn and suddenly sees the bright yellow Regionova in its path. With moments to spare until impact both drivers abandon their seat and retreat towards their respective passenger compartments just as the trains collide at full speed. The RegioShark’s anti-climb structures work as intended and keep either train from mounting the other, but the RegioShark’s nose structure still obliterates the Regionova’s driver’s cab as the much smaller and lighter train is pushed back 12m/39ft from the point of impact. Two people die in the collision, another 24 are injured, 9 of which severely.
Aftermath
The crash echoes through the woods and over the nearby town, leading residents to call the emergency services, giving a bit of much-needed location information to the calls placed by survivors. Responders from both Germany and Czechia respond to the accident, having to either cut a path through the forest from a nearby road or hike 550m/1800ft down the tracks from Pernink station. Responders provide first aid to survivors on the tracks next to the wreckage before carrying them off to waiting helicopters and ambulances, neither of which could access the site. The driver of the RegioShark is found by responders lying by the side of the tracks, uninjured but in a severe state of shock. He is formally arrested at the site, evaluated by medical personnel and then properly arrested.
Firefighters cut the two trains apart during the night, the collision had jammed them up so much they couldn’t just be dragged apart. The ČD estimated damages at 20 Million Czech Crowns (844310 Euros/922723 USD). While the RegioShark can be expected to return to service the Regionova was stripped for parts and scrapped, with the type’s disappointing performance already seeing it replaced by other trains (like the RegioShark), with damaged units being the first to be retired rather than repaired.
A few days after the accident the driver of the RegioShark was finally in a mental state that allowed him to be interrogated, and he flatly admitted being at fault for the accident. He had gotten the days mixed up and thought he was to wait at Pernink station on the weekends and proceed to Nové Jamry during the week. Feeling confident in his supposed knowledge he departed the station southbound, being understandably shocked when the oncoming train he expected to wait at the next station showed up in his path. By that point either driver was unable to avoid what was about to unfold. There wasn’t enough space to stop, not even for an emergency stop to shave off significant speed. Attempting a retreat was the right decision, and in the case of the Regionova it likely saved the driver’s life. Its decades older engineering and lighter construction caused the RegioShark to largely obliterate the driver’s cab, leading to a loss of the driver’s supposed survival cell. It should be noted that the series 810, which the 814 is based on, was constructed before survival cells were a common term in rail vehicle construction. The new driver’s cab fitted during the refurb is a little safer than the cab it replaces, but not by much. The driver’s retreat allowed him to survive the accident he couldn’t avoid with minor injuries.
The accident reinvigorated the discussion about Czechia’s lackluster rail traffic safety, being far from the only accident in recent years caused by a train entering a track without permission. A modern train control and signaling system would have automatically stopped the RegioShark as it attempted to leave Pernink station, but there was no such system in place. With their argument of the low speeds and traffic-volume falling flat the ČD responded by introducing a smartphone-app for their drivers to use which tracked GPS-positions of surrounding trains (read: the driver’s phones running the app) and would warn drivers if they got too close to another train. Regional rail lines would also receive a basic train control system based on the standardized ETCS-system used in other European countries “soon”, with a provisional schedule published in fall 2021 aiming to expand the ETCS-coverage in the country from 650km/404mi to 4750km/2952km by 2030. The total Czech rail network measures 9500km/5903mi, for comparison.
The driver of the RegioShark was charged with negligent cause of bodily harm and negligent manslaughter, and appears to be looking at 2–10 years in jail. As of writing this (June 2023) the proceedings appear to be ongoing.
_______________________________________________________________
A kind reader is posting the installments on reddit for me, I cannot interact with you there but I will read the feedback and corrections. You can find the post right here.
