At least 32 people have died and 64 have been injured after a crane fell on a passenger train in Thailand, which at that time was on a route between Bangkok and the northern part of the country, as reported by the Thai Ministry of Health. Furthermore, as rescue teams have reported to EFE, more than five people could be trapped in the overturned carriages.
According to the authorities, the reasons that caused the collapse of the crane, which at that time was supporting a bridge under construction, are unknown. When it fell on the train, it derailed and a good part of it and the area caught fire. At that time, it is estimated that 171 people were on board, so it is likely that the number of dead and injured will increase as the hours go by.
The misfortune could have been even greater, since at the beginning of the journey there were 288 people on the train. “37 passengers disembarked, leaving 171 on board when the train arrived at the scene of the incident,” the rescuers detailed.
I’m traumatized
One of the survivors, speaking to local television Channel 3, said that she is “traumatized” after what happened. “There was a loud bang, we felt that something was collapsing,” his story began. “The whole car collapsed and was destroyed, I tried to get out myself, but my leg was trapped. When I got off the train I couldn’t walk, I had to crawl,” he declared.
Another survivor has said that they had to receive five stitches, and another has spoken about the fire that broke out afterwards. “Chaos broke out inside the car. The fire spread underneath,” he said.
“Security deficiencies, first hypothesis”
Although the causes are still unknown, the Association of Structural Engineers of Thailand has attributed what happened to “safety deficiencies.” For his part, the Prime Minister of Thailand, Anutin Charnvirakul, has pointed out the need to initiate “a complete investigation” into what happened and has stated that “accidents like this only occur when negligence is committed, steps are skipped or the work does not follow the approved design.”
In Thailand, a railway project is currently being developed to link the capital with the Chinese city of Humming, in the southwest of the country. It is supervised by a subsidiary of the state-owned China Railway Group, the same construction company that was linked a few months ago with the 30-story block that collapsed in March after the 7.7 magnitude earthquake that collapsed Bangkok. Additionally, in April, Thai police arrested a China Railwa executive for being suspected of violating the foreign investment law in order to operate in the country.
