Heartbroken partners of men killed in Wallan train derailment hit out at operators

The devastated wife of a train driver killed in a “completely avoidable” catastrophic train derailment in Wallan has hit out at operators for unforgivable failings that caused the crash.

The heartbroken wife of the train driver killed in the catastrophic derailment at Wallan has lashed rail transport operators for unforgivable failings that led her to lose the “love of her life”.

John Kennedy, who had driven trains for decades, and his pilot Sam Meintanis were killed on February 20, 2020, when a regional passenger train derailed at Wallan, 45km north of Melbourne.

Four years on, Australian Rail Track Corporation (ARTC) and NSW Trains pleaded guilty in the Melbourne Magistrates’ Court on Friday to a single charge of failing to comply with a safety duty under the rail safety national law.

Aerial view of the train derailment in Wallan as authorities investigated the site. Picture: Tony Gough

Prosecutor Sally Flynn, KC, told the court the XPT train was diverted through the Wallan loop track, which has a maximum speed of only 15km/h, that fateful night due to signalling issues on the straight section of track.

But the Sydney-Melbourne train, carrying 155 passengers, approached the loop track at 7.40pm at 130km/h as Mr Kennedy had not been appropriately advised that the train would be diverted.

Despite Mr Kennedy slamming on the emergency brake, the train could not negotiate the turn at that speed, causing the first car to roll onto its side and all five passenger cars to derail.

Eight passengers were seriously injured, while 53 sustained minor injuries.

The partners of two men killed in the Wallan train derailment, Naomi Bruce (left) and Jenny Kennedy (right), leave the Melbourne Magistrates’ Court. Picture: Valeriu Campa

In a heartbreaking victim impact statement, Mr Kennedy’s wife Jenny said her husband’s death was “completely avoidable”.

“I remain unforgiving of an organisation that allows for poor safety processes and inappropriate safety standards to kill a man, husband, father and grandfather in the workplace,” she wrote.

She said she felt “let down and abandoned” by NSW Trains, the company her husband had been loyal to for 40 years, criticising the organisation for its “incompetence”.

From the witness box, Mr Meintanis’ partner Naomi Bruce sobbed as she also told the court how her whole life changed when she learnt she had lost her “lover, best friend, confidante and supporter”.

“My life went from fulfilment to destruction and devastation,” she said.

“Sam went to work that day and never returned home.”

Train driver John Kennedy was killed when the train he was driving derailed at Wallan.

Train pilot Sam Meintanis was also killed. Picture: Daily Mail Australia

Ms Flynn said Mr Kennedy had driven through Wallan eight times between February 8 and February 19, but he was never diverted through the loop and remained on the straight track.

The court heard that not only did ARTC fail to ensure that Mr Kennedy understood the train would divert at Wallan on February 20, it also failed to provide “speed boards” on the approach.

“Speed boards are effective to regulate speed, especially when trains are required to divert,” Ms Flynn said.

Magistrate Brett Sonnet agreed, using the Monash Freeway as an analogy to explain how flashing lights and signs are deployed when drivers need to be alerted to reduced speed limits.

“In this case, it’s perplexing as to why portable signs were not erected along the way which would have given Mr Kennedy the opportunity to reduce the speed of the train,” he said.

The court heard there was also no protocols in place to confirm Mr Kennedy’s understanding of a document specifying the revised route, with no requirement for him to “read back” the document to the network controller.

When the Australian Transport Safety Bureau handed down its final report into the crash, it said it was “probable” he did not recognise the document issued to him on February 20 had been changed and was different to the documents issued on his eight previous trips.

The crash site in Wallan where the two men were killed. Picture: Ian Currie

Ms Flynn added NSW Trains failed to ensure that Mr Kennedy was aware of “safety critical information”, such as changes to the Victorian network before he departed from Sydney.

Lawyers for both companies formally apologised on behalf of their clients on Friday, with ARTC acknowledging it “fell short of the safety standards required by the law”.

While NSW Trains is responsible for the management of the passenger train, ARTC was responsible for the management of the rail line.

NSW Trains argued it should be handed a smaller penalty than ARTC, which was not opposed by Ms Flynn, who said NSW Trains were less culpable than the other operator.

The charge under the rail safety national law carries a maximum penalty of $1.5m.

But the parties agreed the matter could be dealt with in the Magistrates’ Court, which reduces the maximum penalty to $413,000.

According to the charge, both operators failed to ensure that “safe systems for the carrying out of railway operations were developed and implemented”.

“Such failure exposed an individual to the risk of death or serious injury,” the charge concludes.

Mr Sonnet will hand down his sentence on April 3.