Editing Northern Counties Committee (section)

===Accidents===
The early years of the company were relatively free from serious incidents but as traffic increased and the system became busier, weaknesses in less than adequate operating procedures were exposed and a number of accidents occurred. Board of Trade inspectors investigated these and reported on the causes and recommended appropriate corrective actions.

The injury rates were low but sadly there were some fatalities which are mentioned in the list below.

* 9 February 1863. The coupling between two carriages of a Ballymena to Belfast train broke and a first class coach fell on it side but fortunately did not drag other vehicles with it. Two passengers were injured.
* 3 April 1863. A [[pointsman]] at Coleraine turned a down train into the up loop where it collided with engine of an up train
* 2 October 1876. A stopping train from Belfast to Ballymena derailed on a crossover at Cookstown Junction. [[Charles Scrope Hutchinson|Major General C.S. Hutchinson RE]] investigated the accident and blamed the system of wire [[interlocking]] in use at the junction.
* 26 December 1876. The 08.35 Coleraine to Belfast passenger train and 08.15 down goods collided head-on at Moylena near Antrim. One passenger was killed and eight others were injured. Colonel [[Frederick Rich]] RE investigated and, finding fault with the company's method of working the single line by the fixed timetable system, recommended adopting the train staff system until the line was doubled.
* 23 December 1878. Wagons ran away while a mixed train was shunting at Duncrue siding near Carrickfergus.
* 28 September 1887. An up train derailed just on the Londonderry side of the [[Bann Bridge]] at Coleraine. During his investigation, Colonel Rich found that the track was old and the ballast to be of poor quality. He commented on the lack of timber baulks on the bridge itself that would prevent a derailed train from falling in the river and also criticised the signalling arrangements at the bridge which the company revised shortly afterwards.
* 27 February 1892. A ballast train from Limavady ran into the back of the 07.00 Londonderry to Belfast passenger train at [[Castlerock]]. There were no injuries. [[Charles Scrope Hutchinson|Major General Hutchinson]] found fault with personnel at [[Downhill, County Londonderry|Downhill]] and Castlerock for signalling irregularities. The passenger train had been running late due to poor steaming because the brick arch in its [[Firebox (steam engine)|firebox]] had collapsed some days previously and General Hutchinson censured the driver for not reporting the collapse.
* 25 August 1894. A stopping train from Larne Harbour to Belfast derailed on a section of track that was being relaid shortly after leaving [[Whitehead, County Antrim|Whitehead]]. A {{convert|10|mph|km/h|abbr=on}} speed restriction should have been imposed but the permanent way gang carrying out the work had failed to post warning signs and had left the track in a dangerous condition. Fortunately the derailed vehicles remained upright as they passed through Whitehead tunnel otherwise the consequences could have been much more serious.
* 7 August 1897. The firebox collapsed on 2-4-0 locomotive No.58, killing both locomotive men on the approach to Antrim station. [[Francis Marindin|Major F.A. Marindin RE]] found that the procedure for inspecting locomotive boilers was inadequate and a more rigorous regime was put in place.
* 13 July 1898. The 09.55 Belfast to Larne passenger train overran signals at Larne Town station and collided with a train of empty coaches causing extensive damage to both trains. Lieutenant Colonel [[George William Addison|George Addison]] RE found that lapses routinely occurred in working the block system and signals. Shortly afterwards, Larne Town station was completely resignalled and the Larne Town-Larne Harbour section was equipped with tablet instruments.
* 10 October 1900. The 16.00 train from [[Kilrea]] to Coleraine was completely derailed a little over a mile to the south of Coleraine station but fortunately there were no injuries. Major [[J.W. Pringle]] RE determined that the cause was excessive speed over old iron rails aggravated by the rigidity of the double-framed locomotive, No.22. The completion of the track relaying programme was put in hand immediately.
* 25 September 1902. A special troop train from [[Ballincollig]], [[County Cork]] to Larne Harbour became divided. The detached rear portion subsequently collided with that in front between Greenisland and [[Trooperslane railway station|Trooperslane]]. Four vehicles were destroyed and many others damaged; three cavalry horses were killed but there were no other injuries. Major Pringle felt that the locomotive crew had not been sufficiently vigilant in keeping a proper lookout. Furthermore, he censured the [[Great Southern and Western Railway]], the [[Great Northern Railway (Ireland)|GNR(I]]) and the {{abbr|BNCR|Belfast and Northern Counties Railway}}, over whose metals the train had run, for treating it as goods or cattle and marshalling the passenger vehicles behind the non-braked cattle wagons with the result that the vacuum brake was not in operation throughout the train.