17 Sep 2019

Wairarapa morning trains suspended, one injured after tree falls on train

9:43 am on 17 September 2019

Commuter trains on the Wairarapa to Wellington line were suspended this morning after a tree fell onto a passing train near Woodside

Metlink train in Wellington.

Photo: Supplied / GWRC

Metlink said high winds felled the tree which came down on the locomotive of an early morning train into the capital.

The driver was injured and taken to Wairarapa Hospital, and the locomotive was damaged, it said.

The company said it managed to source limited numbers of buses to take stranded passengers from Masterton to Upper Hutt.

The tree was cleared from the track by 9am.

The 10.30am train from Masterton to Wellington and 12.45pm from Wellington to Masterton are running.

MetService issued a severe weather warning yesterday saying strong winds are expected around Wellington and Wairarapa.

This morning it tweeted that it had recorded 124km/h wind gusts at the Remutaka Road summit between the capital and Wairarapa.

A strong wind warning was in effect in Wairarapa until 11am and in Wellington until 8am.

The wind speed is expected to drop this afternoon.