Plenty of people around the world might balk at the apparent cause of the Bihar train disaster and blurt, “Why didn’t you just run the cow over?” So here’s the thing: Cows are not exactly small animals — each weighs 1,200 to 1,500 pounds on average according to Ranchr. Under the best weather conditions hitting a cow could still derail a train, like what happened in Kent, England in 2015. That train, however, fared much better than the 1981 train in Bihar, India. There were no injuries whatsoever.
The disaster in question happened under the worst possible weather conditions in the middle of monsoon season — those who’ve experienced that kind of weather know exactly how ridiculously torrential monsoon rains can get. Flooding is rampant at this time of year, and at the time of the 1981 crash, water levels in the Bagmati River near the track were already way higher than normal. In fact, the Bihar train disaster was only one of 526 India derailments in the first nine months of 1981 alone.
In other words, the driver had no choice but to brake regardless of whatever animal was crossing the track. The tracks were incredibly slick, seven of out the train’s nine bogies (wheel frameworks) lost contact with the rails, and train 416 Down nosedived right into the Bagmati River. While it’s estimated that over 500 people — nearly 600 — died, including four giant wedding parties, only 286 bodies were recovered. It was the most catastrophic train disaster in history at that point.
