Passengers’ injuries reflected carriage interior at the railway accident in Mundelstrup, Denmark

On 1st March 1994, a passenger train with a speed of 85 km/h ran into the rear end of a stopped passenger train north of Aarhus, Denmark. No fatalities occurred. Questionnaires were sent to passengers and crew and 113 of 128 (88%) answered. In the stopped train 32% (9/28) of the sitting passengers compared with 12% (9/76) in the moving train had symptons corresponding to a whiplash lesion. Only the chairs in the moving train had head rests which might explain the observed difference. In the rest section of the moving train with all seats facing the same direction 81% (13/16) of the sitting passengers had face injuries compared to 13% (8/60) in the rest of the train. The higher incidence in the rest section was caused by folding tables at the back of the seats. Serious thoraco-abdominal injuries were only seen in one patient despite the fact that 37 passengers were thrown againsts tables between the seats in the second class section of the moving train. The tables were fragile and usually gave way. In conclusion, carriage interior has a major influence on personal injuries at railway accidents.