A rail ambulance is a vehicle used for medical transportation services on

railway lines A railway track (British English and International Union of Railways, UIC terminology) or railroad track (American English), also known as permanent way or simply track, is the structure on a Rail transport, railway or railroad consisting of ...

. The first rail ambulance in

Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , established_ ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

, was introduced in 1918, with the last withdrawn from service around 1990. The rail ambulance was usually a specially equipped petrol engined rail inspection trolley, funded by a local community, with a railway employee volunteering to drive it when necessary. The initials QATB stand for Queensland Ambulance Transport Brigade.

History

Queensland is a vast, relatively unpopulated area, where providing services to remote communities in a cost-effective way has been a continual challenge. Railways were built from 1865, and in many areas provided the major form of transport until a significant road improvement program was commenced by the Queensland government from the 1960s. It was in this context that the mining community of Blair Athol introduced the first rail ambulance in 1918, in order to enable injured people to be transported to the nearest hospital at Clermont.Kerr, J. 'Triumph of Narrow Gauge', Boolarong Publications 1990 The idea rapidly spread, with rail ambulances being introduced at Dalby (1919),

Mount Mulligan Mount Mulligan is a former mining town and now a rural locality in the Shire of Mareeba, Queensland, Australia. In the Mount Mulligan had a population of 4 people. It is the site of the Mount Mulligan mine disaster, Queensland's worst mining ...

(1920), Roma and

Charleville Charleville can refer to: Australia * Charleville, Queensland, a town in Australia **Charleville railway station, Queensland France * Charleville, Marne, a commune in Marne, France *Charleville-Mézières, a commune in Ardennes, France ** C ...

(1922),

Goondiwindi Goondiwindi () is a rural town and locality in the Goondiwindi Region, Queensland, Australia. It is on the border of Queensland and New South Wales. In the , Goondiwindi had a population of 6,355 people. Geography Goondiwindi is on the MacInt ...

and

Baralaba Baralaba is a rural town and locality in the Shire of Banana in central Queensland, Australia. In the , Baralaba had a population of 314 people. Geography The Dawson River forms the western boundary of the locality. The town is located in the ...

(1923),

Cloncurry Cloncurry is a rural town and locality in the Shire of Cloncurry, Queensland, Australia. In the the locality of Cloncurry had a population of 2,719 people. Cloncurry is the administrative centre of the Shire of Cloncurry. Cloncurry is known as ...

(1925) and

Blackall Blackall is a rural town and locality in the Blackall-Tambo Region, Queensland, Australia. In the the locality of Blackall had a population of 1,416 people. The town is the service centre for the Blackall-Tambo Region. The dominant industry ...

(1941). Other towns known to have had a rail ambulance at some stage include

Charters Towers Charters Towers is a rural town in the Charters Towers Region, Queensland, Australia. It is by road south-west from Townsville on the Flinders Highway. During the last quarter of the 19th century, the town boomed as the rich gold deposits under ...

, Pentland, Atherton,

Ravenshoe Ravenshoe ( ) is a rural town and locality in the Tablelands Region, Queensland, Australia. In the , Ravenshoe had a population of 1,400 people. Geography Ravenshoe is on the Atherton Tableland in Far North Queensland. It is located south w ...

and Millaa Millaa. The last rail ambulances were withdrawn in 1990 from

Mareeba Mareeba is a rural town and locality in the Shire of Mareeba in Far North Queensland, Australia. Between 2008 and 2013, it was within the Tablelands Region. The town's name is derived from an Aboriginal word meaning ''meeting of the waters'' ...

and Blackall, as by that stage road ambulance services were available through the State.

References

External links

1925 map of the Queensland railway system

Photos of the interior of a rail ambulance

3 ft 6 in gauge railways in Australia Railway lines in Queensland Train-related introductions in 1918 Ambulances Health in Queensland Ambulance services in Australia {{train-stub

History

See also

References

External links