| Ricken Tunnel Railway Accident | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Details | |
| Date | October 4th, 1926 12:01 pm |
| Location | Ricken Tunnel, St. Gallen |
| Coordinates | 47°14′59″N 9°3′28″E / 47.24972°N 9.05778°E |
| Country | Switzerland |
| Statistics | |
| Trains | 1 |
| Crew | 6 |
| Deaths | 9 |
The Ricken Tunnel railway accident was a railway accident on October 4, 1926, that killed nine people through carbon monoxide poisoning in the Ricken Tunnel between Kaltbrunn and Wattwil.
The Ricken Tunnel lies under the Ricken Pass and is part of the single-track SBB-operated Uznach–Wattwil line. It is 8,604 metres (28,228 ft) long, with a cross-sectional area of 25.5 square metres (274 sq ft) and a constant incline of 15,75 ‰.[1] The tunnel lacks artificial ventilation. The tunnel was widely disliked by railway personnel during the era of steam operation due to the danger of gas buildup.
The crew of passenger train #3616, which left Wattwil at 11:05 am on October 4, 1926, and arrived in Kaltbrunn at 11:20 am, did not notice any significant gas buildup in the tunnel.[2]
- ^ "Rauchgas-Unfall im Rickentunnel" (PDF 1.2 MB). Schweizerische Bauzeitung, Band 88 (1926), Heft 15. p. 213. Retrieved 2014-01-26.
- ^ "Zum Unglück im Rickentunnel" (PDF; 294 kB). Liechtensteiner Volksblatt. 1926-10-09. p. 7. Retrieved 2014-01-26.