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Another incident in the same vicinity occured whilst on the first train from Barrow to Carlisle, this time it wasn't the doors though. Having slowed the slack approaching Harrington Viaduct I left the back cab ready to get the doors at Harrington Station and was opening the flap for the door controls as we went onto tne viaduct a very steeply curved viaduct, when I was thrown around as the rear set of wheels came off the track and I suddenly realised what had happened I made for the back cab to hit the emergency brake, unfortunately I was thrown around and never made it and I then realised we were in the station and stopped so I releases the doors and got my lamp and started to check the back wheel-set only to find that they were back on the rails, we could only presume that it had come back on courtesy of the check rail.
I phoned my driver to say what had happened and he couldn't believe it as he hadn't felt anything at the front, owing to the attrocious conditions a hollowing gale coming off the Irish Sea we decided it was too risky to go back and check the viaduct and whilst to tried to contact the box in the rear reception was so poor that we were uncertain as to if he had recieved the true message we tried to move and found that the unit would go so we went forward at 5 MPH to Workington where we informed the boxes and got traffic stopped, it was suggested that the following should come in and check the track at which point I blew a fuse and pointed out that this happened on a viaduct and the only way to inspect safely was to await daylight and then check carefully/
Our control then suggested that we should proceed to Carlisle complete with passengers as it would be impossible to get road transport at this time of day, once again I flatly refused to take it any further and eventually buses were provided.
A few weeks later whilst in conversation with a track gang leader he said that the crew who had come off the rails at Harrington were lucky as the viaduct was rotten and it was amazing that the unit had gone completly through and dropped onto the road below.
We had split the longtitudinal timbers and some 30 foot lengths had been torn off.
After this we were always known as the crew who could come off and back on tghe rails whilst others thought about it.
Nice units 142's
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