Rail sabotage

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A film from Camp Claiborne from March 8, 9 and 10 1944 of derailment tests done on the Claiborne-Polk Military Railroad. The tests were done to better train allied personnel in acts of rail sabotage during World War 2.

Rail sabotage (colloquially known as wrecking) is the act of disrupting a rail transport network. This includes both acts designed only to hinder or delay as well as acts designed to actually destroy a train. Railway sabotage requires considerable effort, due to the design and heavy weight of railways.

Contents

Sabotage must be distinguished from more blatant methods of disruption (e.g., blowing up a train, train robbery).

Methods

Relay cabinet arson

In 2022, setting fire to rail relay cabinets that control track operations [1] was a common method of sabotage during the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Track obstruction

Damage to infrastructure

Notable instances

Damage to trains

Intentional switch misalignments

Motivations

Vandalism

Extortion

Terrorism

Military

Simple Sabotage Field Manual published by OSS during World War 2 describes tactics for rail sabotage Simple Sabotage Field Manual.djvu
Simple Sabotage Field Manual published by OSS during World War 2 describes tactics for rail sabotage

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">1995 Palo Verde, Arizona, derailment</span> Railway accident caused by sabotage

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">1915 Vanceboro international bridge bombing</span>

The 1915 Vanceboro international bridge bombing was an attempt to destroy the Saint Croix–Vanceboro Railway Bridge on February 2, 1915, by Imperial German spies.

1939 <i>City of San Francisco</i> derailment Railway accident caused by sabotage

On August 12, 1939, the City of San Francisco train derailed outside of Harney, Nevada, United States, killing 24 and injuring 121 passengers and crew. The derailment was caused by sabotage of the tracks. Despite a manhunt, reward offers, and years of investigation by the Southern Pacific Railroad (SP), the case remains unsolved.

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Pro-democratic and pro-Ukrainian partisan movements have emerged in Russia following the Russian invasion of Ukraine, a major escalation of the Russo-Ukrainian War. These resistance movements act against the authoritarian government of Vladimir Putin in Russia, as well as against civilian supporters of these authorities and the armed forces, with the aim of stopping the war.

The rail war began in different regions of Russia in the spring of 2022 after a similar rail war in Belarus.

References

  1. "Railway sabotage after 50 days of war in Ukraine: here is what we know". RailTech.com. 15 April 2022. Retrieved 2022-06-26.
  2. "Explosion on Bridge". Press. Vol. LXXXVII, no. 26409. Christchurch, New Zealand. New Zealand Press Association. 1 May 1951. p. 6. Retrieved 26 November 2022 via paperspast.natlib.govt.nz.
  3. Richardson, Len (1995). Coal, Class & Community: The United Mineworkers of New Zealand, 1880-1960. Auckland University Press. p. 292. ISBN   978-1-86940-113-9 . Retrieved 26 November 2022 via Google Books.
  4. "SABOTEURS DYNAMITE RAIL BRIDGE". Townsville Daily Bulletin . Vol. LXXI. Queensland, Australia. 1 May 1951. p. 1. Retrieved 15 May 2017 via National Library of Australia.
  5. "THE REGION; Youths Sentenced In Train Crash". The New York Times. March 30, 1985. Retrieved May 8, 2010.
  6. "Teenage 'railroad enthusiast' to be charged as adult in Bennet train derailment". 20 August 2024.
  7. https://transweb.sjsu.edu/sites/default/files/1794_Jenkins_Train-Wrecks-Train-Attacks.pdf [ bare URL PDF ]
  8. Beaumont, Hilary (2021-07-29). "The activists sabotaging railways in solidarity with Indigenous people". the Guardian. Retrieved 2022-06-26.
  9. "Oil Train Disaster Near Seattle May Have Been Caused By Sabotage". NPR.org. Retrieved 2022-06-26.

See also