1995 Baku Metro fire | |
---|---|
![]() One of the metro cars after the accident, with broken windows to make way for the escape | |
Details | |
Date | 28 October 1995 6:00 p.m. – ? |
Location | Baku Metro, Baku, Azerbaijan |
Coordinates | 40°24′47″N49°53′17″E / 40.41306°N 49.88806°E |
Incident type | Fire |
Cause | Electrical malfunction |
Statistics | |
Trains | 1 |
Deaths | 289 |
Injured | 270 |
On 28 October 1995, a fire broke out in the subway system of Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan, between the stations Ulduz and Nariman Narimanov. According to official figures, the fire killed 289 people: 286 passengers (including 28 children) and three rescue workers, while 270 people were injured. [1] The fire was deemed to have been caused by an electrical malfunction, but the possibility of sabotage was not excluded.
Although a number of people who evacuated the train survived, [2] the fire remains the world's deadliest subway disaster. [3] One person, Chingiz Babayev, was posthumously awarded the title of the National Hero of Azerbaijan for saving passengers' lives. [4]
The Ulduz and Nariman Narimanov metro stations serve the northern part of Azerbaijan's capital, Baku. The tunnel between them was equipped with a controllable ventilation system, but had a relatively narrow cross-section (height 5.6 metres (18 ft), width 5 metres (16 ft)). [2]
Before 1995 the deadliest subway accident was the Malbone Street wreck of 1918 in New York City, which killed as many as 93 people. The deadliest subway conflagration before 1995 was the Paris Métro train fire of 1903, which killed 84.
The fire, caused by an electrical fault, occurred during the Saturday evening rush hour at about 6:00 p.m. The affected train, consisting of five fully loaded cars, had just left Ulduz station for Nariman Narimanov. The passengers in car number 5 smelled smoke. Later, passengers in car 4 observed white smoke, which soon turned black and caused irritation. The putative electrical malfunction (a sparkover or electric arc in electrical equipment in the rear of the fourth car [2] ) stopped the train about 200 meters from Ulduz station. When the train stopped, the tunnel became filled with smoke. The driver reported the incident and demanded that the power be cut. However, lethal emissions of carbon monoxide from the burning synthetic materials in the cars quickly affected the passengers. Because of difficulties opening the doors in one of the cars, the passengers were forced to evacuate through another car. Some 15 minutes after the fire started, the ventilation system was switched to exhaust mode and much of the smoke was drawn in the direction of evacuation. Several people were electrocuted while trying to grasp cables in order to escape the blazing train. [5]
The majority of those killed (including 28 children [6] ) were found inside the train, most of them either crushed or trampled to death. [2] Forty bodies were found inside the tunnel. [2] Survivors recalled sparks flying from high-voltage cables just after the train left the Ulduz station. One of the passengers, Tabil Huseynov, 45, described the situation as follows: "As soon as the train entered the tunnel, I saw a flash. Then the flames enveloped the train car, there was a sound of breaking glass, and the lights went out. People started breaking windows to get out. We were starting to suffocate." [7]
The estimated number of victims varied after the fire. Morgue officials reportedly counted at least 303 bodies, while the independent Azerbaijani news agency Turan quoted medical officials as saying the number of people killed was 337. [7] A three-day mourning period was declared. [6] Lukoil rendered $9,000 in financial aid to the families of victims. [8]
The government inquiry commission concluded that the fire was caused by an electrical fault. The fire started in the traction motor of one railway car. [1] No explosives were found. [9] The commission's chairman, Deputy Prime Minister Abbas Abbasov, mentioned "outdated Soviet" equipment. [7] Yet two mysterious large holes on the side of one of the wrecked carriages were reportedly found and Azeri national TV quoted experts as saying the holes indicated the use of an explosive device. President Heydar Aliyev told a U.S. official that while preliminary information indicated a technical fault, the fire was "possibly an organised act of sabotage". [3]
The Supreme Court of Azerbaijan convicted two persons for criminal negligence. The metro operator was sentenced to 15 years in prison and the station traffic controller 10 years. [10]
On February 18, 2003, an arsonist set fire to a Daegu Metro subway train as it arrived at Jungangno station in central Daegu, South Korea. The resulting blaze, which spread when a second train stopped at the same station, killed 192 people and injured another 151. It remains the deadliest loss of life in a single deliberate incident in South Korean peacetime history, surpassing the 1982 shooting rampage committed by Woo Bum-kon.
The disastrous Paris Métro train fire occurred on the evening of 10 August 1903, on what was then Line 2 Nord of the system and is now Paris Métro Line 2. There were 84 deaths, most at Couronnes station, so it is also known as the Couronnes Disaster.
Nariman Karbalayi Najaf oghlu Narimanov was an Azerbaijani Bolshevik revolutionary, writer, publicist, politician and statesman. For just over one year beginning in May 1920, Narimanov headed the government of Soviet Azerbaijan. He was subsequently elected chairman of the Union Council of the Transcaucasian SFSR. He was also Party Chairman of the Central Executive Committee of the Soviet Union from 30 December 1922 until the day of his death.
Baku Metro is a rapid transit system serving Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan. First opened on 6 November 1967 when Azerbaijan was part of the Soviet Union, it has features typical of ex-Soviet systems, including very deep central stations and exquisite decorations that blend traditional Azerbaijani national motifs with Soviet ideology. At present the system has 40.7 kilometres (25.3 mi) of bi-directional tracks, made up of three lines served by 27 stations. The metro is the only one constructed in Azerbaijan, and was the fifth built in the Soviet Union. In 2015, it carried 222.0 million, passengers, an average daily ridership of approximately 608,200. In 2019, it carried 229.7 million, an average daily ridership of 629,315.
Azerbaijan Medical University named after Nariman Narimanov is the formal name of the public medical school located in Baku, Azerbaijan. Due to difficulties with translation, the school is sometimes called: Azerbaijan Medical University, Azerbaijan State Medical University, Azerbaijan State Medical Institute, or simply Medical University, with any of the preceding including the "named after N. Narimanov" or full "Nariman Narimanov". The school is named after Nariman Narimanov, a famous Azerbaijani in Soviet politics, notably party chairman of the Central Executive Committee of the Soviet Union.
During the afternoon rush hour of June 22, 2009, a subway train wreck occurred between two southbound Red Line Washington Metro trains in Northeast, Washington, D.C., United States. A moving train collided with a train stopped ahead of it; the train operator along with eight passengers died, and 80 people were injured, making it the deadliest crash in the history of the Washington Metro.
There have been numerous incidents on the Washington Metro over its history, including several collisions causing injuries and fatalities, and numerous derailments. The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) has been criticized for disregarding safety warnings and advice from experts.
The 1982 Washington Metro train derailment was an incident involving a single Orange Line Washington Metro train during the afternoon rush hour of January 13, 1982, in Downtown Washington, D.C. in the United States. The train derailed as it was being backed up from an improperly closed rail switch between the Federal Triangle and Smithsonian stations, and caused the deaths of three passengers. Several survivors were trapped for hours, and 25 were injured. The incident was the first resulting in a fatality involving the Metro system and remained as the deadliest incident occurring in the system until the June 22, 2009, collision that resulted in nine fatalities.
Rail transport in Azerbaijan is operated by the national state-owned railway company Azerbaijan Railways. The railway network consists of 2,918 km (1,813 mi), its gauge is 1,520 mm, 815 km (506 mi) are double track and 1,272 km (790 mi) are electrified at 3 kV (3,000 V) DC.
The 1994 Baku Metro bombings was a series of terrorist incidents in Baku, Azerbaijan. The first attack was perpetrated at the "20 January" metro station, while the second one took place between the "28 May" and "Ganjlik" stations. As a result of the first attack, 14 people were killed and 49 wounded. The second attack resulted in 13 people killed and 42 injured.
Nariman Narimanov is a Baku Metro station. It was opened on 6 November 1967 and is named after Nariman Narimanov. The 1995 Baku Metro Fire took place near this station.
Chingiz Adil oghlu Babayev was a Senior Lieutenant of Jamshid Nakhchivanski Military Lyceum who was posthumously awarded the title of the National Hero of Azerbaijan for saving people's lives during the 1995 Baku Metro fire.
On 15 July 2014, at around 8:40 am MSK (UTC+04:00), an outbound Moscow Metro train derailed between Park Pobedy and Slavyansky Bulvar stations of the Arbatsko-Pokrovskaya Line. Casualties reported include 24 dead and 160 injured. Early reports suggested a power surge or a terrorist attack to be the cause of the derailment, but both were soon dismissed.
On the early morning of March 27, 2020, at around 3:15 AM, a northbound 2 train of the New York City Subway caught fire as it entered the Central Park North–110th Street station in Harlem, Manhattan. The fire killed the train operator, injured at least 16 others, and severely damaged the north part of the station and the train cars. MTA officials said the conductor and an MTA employee successfully evacuated passengers from the train and off the platform. Passengers and crew from a second train, behind the train with the fire, were also evacuated.