Queensland's beloved Big Pineapple train, which once carried Prince Charles and Princess Diana of Wales, has allegedly been derailed by a brewery tour patron.
The train was in its storage tunnel on the heritage-listed Sunshine Coast site at Nambour when a group of people took it for a spin on Saturday afternoon, police said.
"At least one of them managed to get the thing going and then commenced driving it down the track," Nambour Officer-in-Charge Gary Brayley said.
"It's consequently derailed, along with some of the carriages, and the train has struck a fence that borders the zoo."
Alcohol 'probably a factor': Police
The train and four carriages came off the track, cracking the windscreen and causing a hefty damage bill.
The property crime task force charged a 22-year-old man from Mount Coolum with dangerous operation of a motor vehicle.
Senior Sergeant Brayley said investigations were ongoing, but police suspected alcohol may have been involved.
"If they were part of a tour that was possibly attending various licensed premises, which it seems they may have been, then alcohol was probably a factor in this, but that hasn't been proven," he said.
The train carried Prince Charles his wife Diana when the pair visited Australia in 1983.
It has been out of service since September last year, undergoing major repairs after 60 years of operation.
