Vehicular movement - Four fatalities reported in a Czech Republic train accident during the night.
Last night, there was a tragic collision between a fully loaded passenger train and a freight train in Pardubice, Czech Republic. As reported by the Interior Minister Vit Rakusan, four deaths and 23 injuries have been confirmed so far. Out of the injured, 20 have minor injuries while the remaining 3 have moderate injuries. The identities of the deceased are being compared with the passenger lists as we speak.
Shortly after the accident, numerous rescue workers including firefighters, paramedics, doctors and two helicopters immediately rushed to the scene, which is about 100 kilometers from Prague. According to preliminary reports, the locomotives of both trains collided for an unknown reason. At first, it was unclear whether the freight train was standing or moving at the time of the incident. Images from the site show that one carriage of the passenger train, directly behind its locomotive, has derailed and suffered heavy damage.
The passenger train was operated by private railway company Regiojet on its way from Prague to Kosice, Slovakia. It had over 300 passengers on board at the time of the accident. The eyewitnesses report that the accident happened an hour into the journey. Ukraine's citizens who use this connection to reach their homeland are heavily affected by the incident. The unharmed passengers were taken to nearby shelters via buses.
The exact cause of the accident remains unclear. Interior Minister Rakusan and Transport Minister Martin Kupka both rushed to the scene and are cooperating with the investigations. Local media speculates that the driver of the express train may have missed a stop signal, or the switch may have been incorrectly set. An eyewitness to the "Pravo" newspaper quoted that "I thought the train was going to the wrong track, even though a green signal was on." Suddenly, there was a loud bang and the train came to a halt." A passenger from the train who was unharmed told the media, "I felt a collision and heard glass shattering - immediately there was crying."
The echo of the train collision could be heard from a distance. "The collision woke us up. My wife thought a house had collapsed in the neighborhood" said a neighbor to the "iDnes.cz" news portal. The freight train was carrying the corrosive chemical calcium carbide but two wagons were loaded to ensure safety. The accident occurred at the newly-built Pardubice-Zentrum station which was completed in May.
The most recent severe train accident in the Czech Republic took place in August 2021, where a passenger train and an express train collided on a single-track line in Pilsen (Plzeň) killing three people including the two locomotive drivers. Another accident occurred in July 2020 with two deaths due to a frontal collision on the line from Karlovy Vary (Karlsbad) to Johanngeorgenstadt.
Experts consider the railway infrastructure in the EU nation outdated. The government aims to install the modern European train safety system ETCS on the entire network by 2025. Currently it is available on 1100 kilometers of tracks, but only around 700 vehicles are compatible with the system, and there is a need for a conversion process.
