The widow of the train driver who died in the Aberdeenshire crash has said her husband was not to blame and he did everything by the book.
Stephanie McCullough spoke out as she feared people were implying that “my beautiful kind husband was to blame”.
The train was travelling at 73mph when it hit a landslip near Stonehaven, according to a report published by the Rail Accident Investigation Branch (RAIB) on Friday.
The report revealed that the limit at that spot on the line was 75mph.
Brett McCullough, 45, conductor Donald Dinnie, 58, and passenger Christopher Stuchbury, 62, died in the derailment last week.
Mrs McCullough posted a message on Facebook saying: “I can assure you Brett loved his job and did everything by the book.
“When Brett was at Carmont, he was actually held there for 2 hours, when Brett was told to proceed back north he was told it was good to proceed at line speed that was 75mph, he was under that!!
“We also know Brett saw the landslide because the emergency brakes were applied. Many people don’t know that you can’t just stop a train!
"When the brakes are applied it could take up to a mile to stop a train, it’s not instant like a car.”
The RAIB report confirmed all six vehicles – four of which were for passengers – of the train came off the line after it hit the landslip 1.4 miles northeast of Carmont in Aberdeenshire.
Mrs McCullough’s message said: “It’s extremely hurtful to think people are judging Brett when they have absolutely no idea what they are talking about. Nobody should go to work and not come home.
“I have 3 heartbroken children here who Brett adored. His family was his world and he cared so much about people. Nobody can say a bad word about my kind gentle husband. Steph x.”
The RAIB said there had been heavy rain in the area on the morning of August 12 with 52mm (2in) falling within four hours.
The report added: “Its speed increased, reaching 72.8mph after it had travelled for approximately 1.4 miles, which is within the maximum permitted speed for HSTs [High Speed Trains – the type involved] of 75mph on this stretch of line.
“At around 09:38, the train struck a landslip covering the down line and derailed. As the track curved to the right, the train continued in a roughly straight line for around 77 yards until it struck a section of bridge parapet, which was destroyed.”
The train was the 06:38 service from Aberdeen to Glasgow and it was initially stopped at Carmont at 06:59, after a northbound train reported a landslip further south, on the section of track between Carmont and Laurencekirk.
After sitting at Carmont for more than two hours, it was decided to move the train back to Stonehaven, to allow passengers to get off.
The driver was given permission to move north at 09:25, moving at 5mph initially as it crossed on to the northbound track.
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules here