2 yıl önce

Scores killed, injured in train derailment in central Iran

The train was on its way from the northeastern city of Mashhad to the central city of Yazd and was carrying 348 passengers, according to the national rail authority, when it careered off the track in the desert.

AFP

Iranian Red Crescent rescuers work at the scene of a train derailment near the central Iranian city of Tabas on the line between the Iranian cities of Mashhad and Yazd.

At least 21 people have been killed and dozens injured after a train derailed near the central Iranian city of Tabas after hitting an excavator beside the track.

Yazd province's emergency organisation chief Ahmad Dehghan said on Wednesday that 21 people were killed in the incident, according to the website of state broadcaster IRIB, revising an initial death toll of 17 given by national authorities.

Earlier, national emergency services spokesperson Mojtaba Khaledi told state television that 86 people were injured.

Khaledi had noted that the number of dead may rise, as some injured were in "critical condition". Twenty-four ambulances and three helicopters – seen on state television airlifting casualties to hospital – were dispatched to the scene, he said.

Tabas is some 550 kilometres (340 miles) southeast of the capital, Tehran.

Rescue teams with ambulances and helicopters had arrived in the remote area where communication is poor.

At least 16 people suffered critical injuries, with some transferred to local hospitals, officials said.

Investigation launched

The report said the crash is under investigation. Initial reports suggested the train collided with an excavator near the track, though it wasn't immediately clear why an excavator would have been close to the train track at night.

One official suggest it could have been part of a repair project.

Iran's worst train disaster came in 2004, when a runaway train loaded with gasoline, fertiliser, sulfur and cotton crashed near the historic city of Neyshabur, killing some 320 people, injuring 460 others and damaging five villages. Another train crash in 2016 killed dozens and injuries of scores of people.

Iran has some 14,000 kilometres (8,700 miles) of railway lines throughout a country about two and a half times the size of Texas.

Its rail system sends both people and goods across the country, particularly in rural areas.

Iran also has some 17,000 annual deaths on its highways, one of the world’s worst traffic safety records. The high toll is blamed on wide disregard for traffic laws, unsafe vehicles and inadequate emergency services.

SOURCE: TRTWorld and agencies