| Aracaju train crash | |
| Date: | March 20, 1946 |
| Location: | Aracaju |
| Country: | Brazil |
| Operator: | VFF Leste Brasileiro[1] |
| Type: | Derailment |
| Cause: | Brake Failure caused by worn-out brakes |
| Trains: | 1 |
| Passengers: | 1000 |
| Deaths: | 185 |
| Injuries: | 300 |
The Aracaju train crash, which occurred on March 20, 1946, is the worst ever rail disaster in Brazil; resulting in the deaths of 185 people[2] and 300 injured.[3] The accident happened near Aracaju, capital of the coastal state of Sergipe, 800miles northeast of Rio de Janeiro.[2]
The train concerned was a suburban service operating between Aracaju and Capela, Sergipe,[4] and carrying about one thousand passengers.[2] The locomotive, baggage car and three passenger cars[5] were derailed whilst descending a steep incline near Aracaju,[2] most of the dead being "smashed within the cars", "Many bodies were mutilated so badly that identification was impossible".[5]
Grief-stricken relatives came to the scene and nearly lynched the surviving locomotive engineer who, depending on the source, either took refuge in a police station[3] or fled the area later to surrender in the town of Laranjeiras, Sergipe.[2] The train conductors also fled.[5]