• E-mail
• Print
• Comment
• Font Size
• Digg
• del.icio.us
• Discuss article

Ten injured in 3-train crash in Buenos Aires

Posted on: Monday, 27 February 2006, 22:03 CST

BUENOS AIRES, Argentina (Reuters) - Two commuter trains and a cargo train collided in Buenos Aires on Monday, injuring at least 10 people, police and train company officials said.

The driver of one of the passenger trains was seriously injured after being trapped in the twisted metal, Gustavo Gago, a spokesman for the TBA commuter train company, told reporters.

There were no deaths reported.

A Reuters witness said two thunderous crashes were heard in the upscale district of Palermo at about 9:40 pm (7:40 EST/0040 GMT) when the trains hit each other.

Dozens of passenger, many on their way home from work, walked away dazed from the scene, tending to bloody noses or minor cuts.

"The train was about half full. We were lucky that none of the passengers were standing up," said Guillermo, a businessman on his way home from work, wiping a bloody nose.

"We must have been traveling at about 60 kilometers (37.28 miles) per hour," he said. A police officer confirmed the estimated speed of the train.

The crash was caused by two derailed cars from a cargo train that fell across the tracks, police said. A passenger train heading from downtown Buenos Aires to the suburbs then slammed head-on into the cargo containers. A third passenger train traveling in the opposite direction also banged into the containers but none of its passengers were injured.

Argentine commuters often complain of lax safety standards on the city's passenger trains, which the government handed over to private operators in the early 1990s.

In March 2005, about 130 people were injured when a commuter train slammed into a stopped train just outside the downtown station.

Source: REUTERS

More News in this Category