The RMT's Trains Health and Safety council (THSC) have responded to an incident today which saw masonry fall onto the track at Mile End on the Central line.

The council is seeking further information on what could have been a very serious incident, and have written to LUL bosses for further details.

The Letter
Could you supply us with all the information you have on today's incident at Mile End Station. We gather that lumps of masonry, as large as a dot matrix, fell approx 10ft from the station roof to the track at the W/B starter.

I must say it was very disappointing to learn about this incident via social media. Can you confirm that all Central Line safety reps have now been informed in accordance with safety legislation and the notifiable incident process?

We hear that one possible cause of this incident was due to water ingress. Can you explain how exactly you have satisfied yourselves that it is now safe to run trains through this area? Can we guarantee that there will be no repeat of this incident? The fact that there is a TSR now in place at this location would seem to suggest an element of caution.

As you can imagine, our drivers are very concerned about this incident. By all accounts it could have been a lot worse. Trains approach Mile End Station at approx 50 to 60 KPH. If masonry were to hit a train at this speed we would have major incident on our hands. It is vital that we have as much information on this incident as soon as possible to assuage the concerns of our Central Line drivers.

We trust a full investigation will be under way ASAP with the full involvement of RMT safety Reps.

We look forward to a speedy reply.

Regards
RMT Train's safety Council