Train crashes through buffers at busy London commuter station

Around 50 passengers were evacuated

Author: Alice YoungPublished 12th Oct 2021
Last updated 12th Oct 2021

Two people were injured when a train crashed through buffers at a station.

The incident involved a London Overground service at Enfield Town station, north London, during rush hour on Tuesday morning.

Images posted on social media show the train remained upright but came off the tracks and stopped just short of hitting a station building.

London Ambulance Service said in a statement:

"We were called at 8.16am this morning to reports of a train derailed at Enfield Town railway station, Enfield.

"We sent a number of resources to the scene: one ambulance crew, an emergency planning officer, a clinical team manager, two incident response officers, medics in cars, and our hazardous area response team.

"Two people were assessed at the scene for minor injuries, but they were not taken to hospital."

London Fire Brigade said in a statement:

"Firefighters have been called to a derailed train at Enfield Town Railway Station this morning.

"An eight carriage passenger train derailed after hitting buffers at the station.

"Around 50 people were evacuated from the train before the Brigade arrived by TfL and station staff. Two people have been treated for minor injuries by London Ambulance Service crews.

Station Commander Jim O’Neill, who is at the scene, said:

“The train has hit the buffers at the station, which is at the end of the line, and gone up over the top of them.

“Firefighters carried out a systematic search of the train to ensure there were no further people on board.

“Crews are now assisting station staff to make the scene safe and a recovery operation will then be carried out.”

Rail regulator the Office of Rail and Road (ORR) said:

"We're aware of an incident at Enfield Town railway station and we are sending two ORR safety inspectors to assist emergency services and help establish the full circumstances surrounding this incident."

Transport for London, which controls the London Overground network, said services were suspended from Edmonton Green to Enfield Town "while we deal with an operating incident at Enfield Town".

Hear all the latest news from across the UK on the hour, every hour, on Greatest Hits Radio on DAB, smartspeaker, at greatesthitsradio.co.uk, and on the Rayo app.