Potter Bar: 20 Years On: A Personal Reflection
This week sees the 20 th anniversary of the Potters Bar Train Crash of 2002. It was caused by poor maintenance. It was caused by corporate failings. Seven people were killed and over 70 hurt. Like all such incidents the anniversary will be a painful day for many. I am pleased to see that a local church will be holding a service to commemorate the event. There were a string of major railway accidents in the late 90s and early 00s. Southall, Ladbroke Grove, Hatfield and Ufton Nervet spring to mind, although there were several others. I had a small role at many of these events, the experience of which has left me with a tiny insight into the enormity of bereavement by sudden disaster and an acute awareness of the impact of such events on responders. I had a minor role in the response to Potters Bar. I dealt with the media and in the days following I hosted the bereaved as Family Liaison Officers brought them to the scene. I explained to them what had happened an