Passenger criticises response to train derailment

A passenger on a train which derailed near Lewes in East Sussex has criticised the rail industry's response, both immediately afterwards, and in the weeks since the incident which injured 22 people.

Rob Bradley and his six-year-old daughter were among about 150 passengers on the service which derailed on 13 August, leaving two people with serious injuries.

Bradley has also joined a group of people who are taking legal action against Southern Rail over their injuries.

A spokesperson for both companies said "a wealth of support has been offered to those we know were onboard the train" since the derailment.

Bradley, from Eastbourne, said that while staff on the train did a "marvellous" job given the circumstances, he says he began encountering issues as soon as he and his daughter left the train.

He said: "The emergency services were brilliant. The fire brigade get you off the train, the ambulance service check you're able to breathe.

"Then you go to the police and the police then take your details, and then after that, there was nothing.

"There was nobody from the rail company there."

He told BBC Radio Sussex it was "like a war scene" as people sat with "blood dripping down their heads".

Bradley said there was no guidance on where those who escaped from the crashed train should go.

The spokesperson for Southern Rail and Network Rail said: "In the immediate aftermath, railway staff joined emergency services in setting up a refuge in the Landport Community Hub where those impacted could be supported by railway representatives, arrange onward travel and seek medical attention for minor injuries.

"We provided buses and taxis for those affected and had made themselves known to us."

A "dedicated helpline" was also open, they added.

Separately, he is now part of a group of people who have instructed Fletchers Solicitors to pursue legal action against Southern Rail.

Bradley's claim centres around the physical problems he says he now has with his back, alongside the "lasting mental issues" experienced by his daughter, who he said no longer likes travelling by train.

Claire Hutchinson, partner and head of serious injury at the law firm, said: "Our team has seen passengers as young as six up to 57-years-old affected by this incident, many of whom have been left psychologically affected as well as suffering physical injuries."

While initial findings from the Rail Accident Investigation Branch uncovered an "irregularity" with the tracks, authorities have not confirmed the cause and investigations are ongoing.

The route between Haywards Heath and Lewes, shut following the derailment, reopened at the start of September.

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