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K 183 Steamrail Victoria |
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This photograph is kindly provided by Gordon Ross and shows K 183 at Nyora.
The locomotive is wearing an attractive blue livery.
K 183 was
built by the Victorian Railways' Newport Workshops in 1943 to the successful
K-class 2-8-0 locomotive design for branch-line work. A total of 53 K-class
locomotives were constructed for branch-line duties, with a significant number
retained in storage or for workshop shunting duties towards to end of steam
traction on the Victorian Railways. 21 K-class locomotives have survived into
preservation.
K 183 had been plinthed
in a park at Yarragon. In 1982 the locomotive unit was swapped for worn-out
sister K 162 and restored for main-line
excursions by Steamrail
Victoria. It was normally shedded at Newport Workshops.
K 183 was damaged in a
tragic accident on Sunday 13 October 2002, killing three of the footplate crew
and severely injuring a fourth. The accident occurred outside Benalla, when a B-Double semi-trailer failed to clear a
level crossing. The victims were leading members of the Victorian railway
preservation scene. K 183 has since been stored damaged at Newport Workshops.
Update: After a 19-year hiatus, K 183 has now been repaired and returned
to service, with mainline test runs occurring in late 2021.
References
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a |
‘A brief
history of Preserved Rolling Stock of Victoria’ by
Norm Bray, Peter J Vincent and Daryl M Gregory. Published
by Brief History Books, PO Box 437, Sunbury, Vic 3429. |
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b |
ARHS
(Victorian Division) 'North Williamstown Railway Museum', Third
Edition 1968, revised 1977, reprinted 1980. |
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c |
‘Locomotives
of Australia - 1985 to 2010’ (Fifth
Edition), by Leon Oberg, published
2010 by Rosenberg Publishing Pty Ltd. |
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d |
Wikipedia
page for VR K-class locomotives: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Victorian_Railways_K_class Retrieved
21 February 2023 |
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e |
Steamrail
Victoria Facebook page, Retrieved 1 February 2022 |
Page updated: 21 February 2023
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