13 casualties treated at Salisbury District Hospital following train crash
Two services collided in a tunnel on the city's outskirts
Last updated 1st Nov 2021
Salisbury District Hospital have confirmed that 13 people were treated for injuries sustained in last night's train crash in Fisherton Tunnel.
Four patients were originally admitted but as of this afternoon just one remains in hospital in a stable condition.
The train driver who was initially trapped in his cab has suffered life-changing injuries and is in a stable condition at Southampton General Hospital.
More than a hundred people were evacuated from the two trains, which collided just before 7pm.
Stacey Hunter CEO at Salisbury Foundation Trust said:
"I would like to thank all our colleagues who responded to this incident in a calm, professional and compassionate manner. We are all relieved that the outcome of the accident hasn't been more severe.”
WHAT WE KNOW SO FAR
The incident happened in Fisherton Tunnel close to London Road.
A spokesperson for Network Rail said "the rear carriage of the 1708 Great Western Railway service from Portsmouth Harbour to Bristol Temple Meads derailed after striking an object on its approach to Salisbury station"
"The derailment knocked out all of the signalling in the area. Subsequently, the 1720 South Western Railway service from London Waterloo to Honiton then collided with the Bristol train."
Around 50 fire fighters were called to the scene from across Wiltshire and Hampshire, as well as ambulances from South Western and South Central services and lots of police.
The line through Salisbury remains closed as investigations continue on the track.
A care centre was set up at the nearby St Mark's Church.
Claire Mann, managing director of South Western Railway, which had one of it's trains involved, said it is "too early to speculate" about the crash and said the company is waiting for the outcome of an investigation.