E48 | The Luna Park Ghost Train Fire (AUS)

On a quiet winter Saturday in 1979, three separate passengers rode the Ghost Train at Sydney's Luna Park, saw a small fire burning inside an imitation fireplace, and thought it was part of the show. Minutes later the ride was an inferno. Seven people died: John Godson and his two young sons, and four Waverley College schoolboys. A fifth boy was lifted out of his carriage seconds before it went in. The coroner could not say how the fire started. Forty-seven years on, a police report sits suppressed, a million-dollar reward stands unclaimed, and the State Coroner has still not decided whether to ask the question again.

A $1,000,000 reward remains on offer from the NSW Government and NSW Police for information about the Ghost Train fire. It is unusual, and worth understanding: it does not require the charge or conviction of any person. It is offered for information alone.

Strike Force Sedgeman, run by the Homicide Squad's Unsolved Homicide Team, has reviewed the case. Investigators have asked for anything about that night, including:

* the group of five men in distinctive motorcycle clothing seen near the Ghost Train shortly before the fire, who left the park quickly as it took hold and were never traced

* the smell of kerosene reported around the ride by several people

* anything from anyone who gave a statement to police in 1979 and was never called to the inquest

* anything about the conduct of the original police investigation

Crime Stoppers: 1800 333 000\

[nsw.crimestoppers.com.au](https://nsw.crimestoppers.com.au)\

Information is treated in strict confidence. Police ask that you do not report information via their social media pages.

**A NOTE ON SOURCING**

Nobody has ever been charged over this fire. Abe Saffron, Detective Inspector Douglas Knight, Jack Rooklyn and Neville Wran are all deceased and none was ever charged in connection with it. No court has made any finding against any of them in relation to the fire.

The allegation that Saffron ordered the fire came from an anonymous source in the ABC's 2021 series and was assessed by independent reviewers as essentially hearsay. The 1981 accusations that Knight took bribes were never tested or proved. Separate and on the public record: in 1974 Justice Athol Moffitt condemned Knight for dishonesty in evidence to his royal commission.

On Neville Wran we have followed the independent review commissioned by the ABC and conducted by Rodney Tiffen and Chris Masters, which found no evidence he interfered in the Luna Park lease decision and found the series' suggestion of a direct link between him and Saffron misleading. The same reviewers found the fire was, on the balance of probabilities, arson, and that the police investigation was inadequate and corrupted.

The investigation remains open.

**SOURCES**

Coroner Kevin Anderson, Inquiry into the fire and deaths at Luna Park, findings 3 September 1979 — [coroners.nsw.gov.au](https://coroners.nsw.gov.au)\

ABC Editorial Review 25: Exposed: The Ghost Train Fire, Rodney Tiffen and Chris Masters, August 2021\

ABC News, "Accident or arson?" — Meldrum-Hanna, Begley, Karagic, Balendra, 2021\

NSW Police Force, $1m reward — [police.nsw.gov.au](https://police.nsw.gov.au)\

AAP, Miklos Bolza, 10 September 2024\

Dictionary of Sydney; Australasian Leisure Management; The Conversation

**SUPPORT**

This episode concerns the deaths of children and the grief of the families left behind. If it lands heavily: Australia — Lifeline 13 11 14, Beyond Blue 1300 22 4636. New Zealand — call or text 1737.

While some dramatic license is taken during the retelling of these stories, but you can be sure that these true crime stories are all based 100% on real events and facts.

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This podcast is researched, and written by the Brevity Studios team using AI tools, and is narrated in its entirety by - Ryan Wolf.

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