Mangled wreckage of BHP runaway train revealed in video footage

The mangled wreckage of a deliberately derailed runaway iron ore train in Western Australia’s Pilbara region has been revealed in video footage from the crash site.

The footage shows the twisted wreckage of the two-kilometre long train, some carriages partly buried under mounds of iron ore.

The BHP-operated train, which included four locomotives and 268 wagons of ore, travelled 92km with no one on board before it was stopped by being remotely derailed after 50 minutes.

The train had been travelling from Newman to Port Hedland when the train driver got out to inspect a wagon at 4.40am on Monday and the train took off.

A Perth remote control centre 1,500km away carried out the derailment at 5.30am.

The train was travelling at an average speed of 110km/h before the derailment at Turner, 120 kilometres south of Port Headland.

No one was injured in the incident. A Port Hedland councillor, Julie Arif, said the wreckage was likely to be cordoned off from sightseers.

“It’s nowhere near the highway,” she said. “The access road that runs beside the track is private property, so chances are they have it blocked.”

Ahead of the formal investigation, BHP has declined to speculate on what caused the train to bolt.

BHP has suspended its train operations but its mine sites are running normally.

“We are working with the appropriate authorities to investigate the situation,” a spokeswoman said. “Recovery operations are under way.”

More than 130 staff have been deployed to help with the recovery and that number is set to increase in coming days.

One and a half kilometres of track were damaged and the company expects partial reopening of its WA rail operations in a week.

BHP will rely on stockpile reserves of iron ore at Port Hedland to maintain its port operations.

The company is talking to customers over contractual arrangements.

A mining insider told Perth Now the incident could cost the company an estimated $55m a day or 3m to 8m tonnes of production.

In July rival mining giant Rio Tinto clocked up a world first when its maiden driverless train voyage carried 28,000 tonnes of iron ore 280km from its Mount Tom Price mine to a WA port.