A freight train on a test run collided head-on with another train on the outskirts of Chile’s capital on Thursday, killing at least two rail workers and injuring nine others, a rare fatal accident in the South American country.
Police said they were investigating to determine the cause of the crash, in which the test vehicle came fully onto the freight train. Authorities said the driver of the test train and a railway employee had been detained for questioning on suspicion of negligence resulting in death.
An unusually cold autumn has hit parts of South America, with Chile experiencing its coldest May in 74 years.
Photos and videos from the scene showed carriages overturned several metres above the badly damaged freight train. In the San Bernardo district, just south of the capital, Santiago, two dozen emergency vehicles swarmed the area, where a tangle of metal debris lay as helicopters buzzed overhead. Trains in Santiago remained suspended Thursday after the crash.
Police inspect two trains that collided in San Bernardo, Santiago, Chile, Thursday, June 20, 2024. (AP Photo/Esteban Felix)
The state railway company said the eight-car freight train was carrying 1,346 tonnes of copper, Chile’s main export, and had several people on board, while the other train had 10 workers carrying out speed tests.
Security camera footage showed the two trains colliding at high speed, and it was not immediately clear why the test train did not notice the freight train approaching.
“We need to identify the causes and take appropriate measures,” Transport Minister Juan Carlos Muñoz told The Associated Press.
Officials identified the two who died as freight train crew members. Nine people were injured, including four Chinese nationals who were driving the test train. Medical sources said six people remained in hospital, one in intensive care.
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Heavy rains have lashed Chile in recent days, causing flooding that has submerged hundreds of homes and forced thousands to evacuate. The downpours had largely subsided in Santiago on Thursday and did not appear to have caused clashes.
Train accidents have become rare in Chile. The government significantly boosted safety awareness after a passenger train collided with a bus in 2001, killing 20 people and injuring many more. The country has not had a fatal accident since then, but there have been four derailments and other accidents in the past 20 years, injuring dozens.
