A fully-laden coal train travelled several kilometres through multiple level crossings, unmanned, before it came to a halt at Glennies Creek last night.
Railway safety officials are looking into the incident which occurred around midnight on Saturday. It happened during a crew changeover, however no injuries have been reported.
Pacific National, which hauls coal from mines in the Hunter Valley, has confirmed the incident in a statement.
“Pacific National can confirm that an incident involving one of its coal services occurred in the Hunter Valley during the early hours of 25 July 2026. There were no injuries to our crew or any members of the public and there was no collision or derailment.
Pacific National immediately notified Australian Rail Track Corporation network control and the Office of the National Rail Safety Regulator.
Safety is Pacific National’s highest priority. We take this incident extremely seriously and are fully cooperating with the regulator and all relevant authorities to understand exactly what occurred and identify any actions required to prevent a recurrence,” the statement read.
The fully-laden coal train started rolling backwards, downhill on its own, during a crew changeover at Camberwell, between Singleton and Muswellbrook just after midnight last night. It reached speeds of more than 60kmh before it came to a halt near a level crossing at Glennies Creek.
The incident held up coal and passenger train movements for several hours. The line has since been cleared.
Does ON lose its accreditation until the investigation is completed?