On July 16th 1956 at 3am in the morning AB745 was traveling north to New Plymouth with a full load of freight. There was an indication of a possible problem near the Naumai Park crossing of High Street Hawera. The driver of a passenger train had indicated by telephone to the controller at Wanganui some unevenness on the line close to the crossing. It had been raining quite heavily for 3 or 4 days and as the railway line was in a low lying location storm water often flowed towards it from the town. Although Fred Price the driver slowed down all of a sudden it began to slide and there was nothing he could do. It came to rest as the picture shows. He and the fireman Dave Marshall were lucky to survive but the Railway management made the decision to just cover it up and leave it where it lay.
Some ten years ago Tony Batchelor purchased from NZ Rail with the right to recover it when he was able.
The following pages tell the story that has unfolded since then.