Tangiwai Tragedy
A DigitalNZ Story by patrick
On the 24th December 1953 the passenger train derailed plummeting into the Whangaehu River killing 151 of the 285 people on board. - History 2.1 internal assessment.
Tangiwai, Train, River, Railway, Natural Disaster, Ruapehu, Volcano, Lahar flow.
On the 24th of December 1953, the Tangiwai railway tragedy became a defining moment in New Zealand's history marking one of the country's deadliest natural disasters in terms of casualties. It also remains to this day as New Zealand's largest railway tragedy. The disaster is forever remembered in New Zealands heart for the loss of all of those involved.
Images of the Tangiwai Tragedy.
Showing the disastrous outcome for the carriages which plummeted in the river, aswell as a part of the collapsed bridge being seen in the background.
Carriage wreckage.
One of the six carriages that plummeted into the river.
National Library of New Zealand
Image displaying the harsh conditions of the river flow on the train wreckage.
Can see the collapse/remains of the other carriages in the background.
Auckland Libraries
Veiw of tradgedy from above.
The image shows the wreckage being lifted from what once was raging river flows aswell as parts of the collapsed bridge.
Alexander Turnbull Library
Audio perspectives/stories from involvments of the Tangiwai tragedy, sharing multiple POVs on the day a way of visualizing the tradgedy for those who werent there
A eye wittness perspective of the tradgedy.
A eye wittness of the tradgedy a hour after it began discussing the raging river floods and flows.
Manatū Taonga, the Ministry for Culture and Heritage
A survivors perspective on the tradgedy, interveiw.
A perpective from a survivor who was in carriage Z of the train.
Manatū Taonga, the Ministry for Culture and Heritage
A 40th anniverasy show discussing the tradgedy.
Voices shared from those involved such as survivors, eye wtinesses, the prime minister at the time etc.
Ngā Taonga Sound & Vision
Videos shared on how the tradgedy took place and the rememberance had for the tradgedy, including diagrams of the reasoning/how it unfolded.
Multi perspective representation of how the tradgedy was remebered.
A video made with a visual represention of the tradgedy aswell as multiple peoples perspectives, survivors, wittnesses.
NZ On Screen
A video explaining the Tangiwai tradgedy and how its remebered.
Shows the remeberance of those who lost lives with the memorial and explains the tradgedy with a diagram of the wreckage
Manatū Taonga, the Ministry for Culture and Heritage
A in depth video which touches on the causes of the tradgedy.
Displays the mountains reasonings/causes into the release of the lahar flow which cause the bridge pillars to collapse.
Auckland War Memorial Museum Tāmaki Paenga Hira
Why does the disaster remain so resonant in our history, how has it been remembered?
A grave of some of those who lost their lives during the tradgedy.
A grave site of the Nicholls family their to remeber the loss of five of their lives.
Palmerston North City Library
A sport shield named after Tangiwai.
A cricket shield made to commemorate/remember those who lost their lives during the Tangiwai tradgedy.
Radio New Zealand
The Tangiwai memorial site.
located just near the banks of the river in which the tradgedy took place.
Palmerston North City Library
Survivors, those involved with the Tangiwai tradgedy. (how are those affected?)
Another Two survivors of the Tangiwai tradgedy.
Two survivors C D Sulenta and L Wasley on the relief train after the tradgedy.
Auckland Libraries
A couple of survivors after the tradgedy.
Tangiwai Disaster survivor Louis Green and his fiancee Miss J Lewis at Pukekohe Railway Station.
Auckland Libraries
Map/diagram of the Tradgedy .
Map showing where each of these carriages were swept to aswell as key detials such as the pillars which were swept away.
Manatū Taonga, the Ministry for Culture and Heritage