with other trains. Twenty-one people were killed. A separate switch determined whether the main control handle applied power or used the motors for braking, and the driver had failed to select braking and therefore inadvertently accelerated the train. March 21 – Italy – On a passenger train being assisted by a bank engine in the rear, a passenger operated the emergency signal near Spoleto. Two of the passenger cars crashed together hard enough to telescope, presumably because the bank engine had separated from the rear of the train and crashed into it when the train was braked. 4 people were killed and 60 injured. April 17 – United Kingdom – Winsford rail accident (1948): Signalling error results in 24 deaths. May 15 – India – The Dehra Dun Express from Howrah was derailed near Dhanbad, possibly by sabotage, while on an embankment high; 31 people were killed and 101 injured, 19 seriously. May 29 – Taiwan – While traveling over the Xindian River Bridge (now the Huacui Bridge) between Wanhua Station and Banqiao Station, the third-class train car of section 9 (car number 22034) of a Taiwan Railways train suddenly erupts in flames. Although the engineer stops the train, the fire ultimately spreads to three other cars. Passengers flee towards the front and rear of the train and others even jump into the Xindian River to escape the fire; 21 are confirmed dead with another 43 presumed when the four cars burn to the ground. A passenger had brought a flammable liquid on board and this ignited, starting the fire. Taiwan Railways Administration bans dangerous goods from trains, and implements a reward system for those who report violators. July 17 – United Kingdom – An express train and a local train collide at Ardler Junction, Scotland. Two people were killed and seven injured, one seriously. The local train overran signals, with a signalman's error in accepting the train when the express had been accepted being a contributory factor. July 17 – United Kingdom – The locomotive of an express passenger train derails in Barnet Tunnel, Hertfordshire. On leaving the tunnel, the train derails on a crossover at , Middlesex. One person was killed. A combination of faulty track and excessive speed was found to be the cause. July 29 – French-occupied zone of Germany – A tank car, loaded with Dimethyl ether and parked within the industrial complex of BASF