The Scar

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By Ken BanksBBC Scotland North East reporter

A passenger who survived a fatal rail crash near Stonehaven has described The Moment that The Train Derailed - and paid tribute to The Conductor who was among The Victims .

The 32-year-old woman, who wants to remain anonymous, suffered serious face and shoulder injuries after being thrown across The Carriage and out of a window.

She Said conductor Donald Dinnie had been a " genuinely nice man" and expressed her shock at his death.

" I couldn't understand how Donald was standing talking to me One minute and gone The Next , " She Said .

Donald's partner, Trish Ewen, has also told how her life was turned Upside Down after his death.

The Two Women spoke out as Network Rail admitted a series of health and safety failings which led to the death of three people in The Crash .

Driver Brett McCullough, 45, and passenger Christopher Stuchbury, 62, were also killed when The Train hit a landslide in August 2020 after Heavy Rain .

The 32-year-old passenger, from the Stonehaven area, said she had not realised what was happening until just before impact.

" The First Time I realised there was an issue was when The Movement on The Train felt weird. It just didn't feel typical, it was like floating or sliding, like when you aquaplane in a car, " She Said .

" There was a strange noise like metal dragging along metal. I will never forget that noise.

" I looked up at that moment and almost immediately I was thrown across The Carriage .

" I hit The Window head on and I was knocked out. "

The Next thing she remembers is Waking Up at the side of The Railway line and seeing The Train behind her.

" The Carriage directly behind me was laying across the rail track, crushed under another carriage. I later found out that the crushed carriage was The One that I had been ejected from.

" I could see a fire and smell smoke. I became aware very quickly that I was hurt. "

She had blood on her face and clothes and could feel a bone sticking out of her left shoulder.

" My ears were ringing so it was hard to make things out. But I remember two Sounds - One was a weird deep humming noise coming from The Train .

" The Other was a voice, a scream, someone calling for help and Someone Else shouting back that help was coming.

" I was just sitting in shock. I lost all my belongings in The Crash , so I relied on both another passenger and members of The Public , to tell My Family I was alive. "

The Survivor said there were moments when she felt guilty about Surviving - especially when she thought about Donald Dinnie .

" I remember him being a chatty and genuinely nice man, " She Said .

" Donald spoke to me about his partner, even joking that The Weather would mean he'd get to finish early and was excited to get home.

" He kept us all informed, thinking of Other People the whole time and making sure we were all okay. "

She felt an " overwhelming sadness" when she learned that he had died in The Crash .

" If I'm honest that's my main motivation for talking now.

" I want Donald's family to know he was happy That Day , thinking of his loved ones the whole time and above all else, he made us feel safe. I'm truly sorry you lost him. "

The Woman said she had " totally changed" since The Crash .

" I'm a lot more fearful now, whereas I used to be more easy-going.

" I even struggle to be a passenger in a car. It's like you can't feel safe unless you are literally in control of everything.

" I do still take The Train - it took a long time to get the confidence But I'm Getting There . "

She Said she was reminded of the derailment Every Day when she looked in The Mirror .

" The Scar on my face is a Constant Reminder of That Day , But also a reminder that without it I wouldn't be alive.

" I don't know why I survived. But I feel lucky Every Day that I did. "

Trish Ewen, 59, and Mr Dinnie, 58, had been a couple for eight years before The Tragedy .

" The Last three years has completely turned My Life Upside Down , " said Trish.

" I got a phone call while I was at work to say there was a train accident and I went to A Family member's house and we all sat around the Television - we didn't know what else to do.

" No-One had called us so we still had no confirmation if it was Donald's train - But I knew in my gut it was. "

Trish said that she and Donald should have been thinking about retiring together, But that she had been left to exist alone.

" Life throws challenges at us all But something like this is so incomprehensible that there's no past experiences to draw on to ease any acceptance or recovery, " She Said .

" You don't know what to do, where to turn, and there's genuinely nothing to do But brace yourself for each New Day without your loved One . "

She Said it was right that Network Rail had been prosecuted over The Crash , and said that any financial penalty should be invested in improving the railways.

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Source of news: bbc.com