Louisiana

Big Bayou Canot rail accident



The wreck of the Sunset Limited at Big Bayou Canot

Details
Date: September 22, 1993; 2:53 am
Location: Mobile, Alabama, U.S.
Coordinates: 30.8173°N 87.9932°W

The Big Bayou Canot rail accident was the derailing of an Amtrak train on the CSX Transportation Big Bayou Canot Bridge near Mobile, Alabama, United States, on September 22, 1993. It was caused by displacement of a span and deformation of the rails when a tow of heavy barges collided with the rail bridge eight minutes earlier. Forty-seven people were killed and 103 more were injured. To date, it is both the deadliest train wreck in Amtrak's history and the worst rail disaster in the United States since the 1958 Newark Bay rail accident in which 48 lives were lost.

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