"20 Tonnes of Death Coming out of the Darkness"

4 Railway Workers Killed in England

Four British railway workers were killed when a runaway train wagon weighing several tons and travelling 40 miles per hour rolled downhill for four miles and ploughed into them as they worked on the tracks. No lookout had been posted because the track was "closed."

The wagon is thought to have broken loose at 6am and gathered speed as it rolled down a four-mile sloping section of track, hitting the 10-strong gang at about 45mph.

It rolled another mile before coming to a halt.

The four were killed instantly and three were injured, one seriously. Three others managed to jump clear.

Their 40-year-old friend, too upset to be named, said: "This was the worst nightmare for any railman, an unmanned wagon coming straight at you out of the pitch darkness.

Meanwhile, the wife of one of the dead workers told of her husband's concerns about safety equipment before the accident:

The wife of one of four railway workers killed by a runaway wagon on Sunday has revealed how he had complained before the accident about safety equipment.

Christine Waters, 50, said her husband Chris had told her that he and his fellow workers could not hear when wearing new helmets and feared they were "more of a danger than safety".

Reports on Monday suggested the men could not hear the wagon approaching and also that they could not hear mobile phone calls from colleagues further up the line trying to warn them of the danger.