Unfortunate Mishap - Four fatalities result from a head-on train collision in the Czech Republic.
In a tragic incident involving two trains, one carrying passengers and the other hauling freight, multiple lives have been lost in the Czech Republic. Pardubice witnessed this disaster, with Interior Minister Vit Rakusan confirming four deaths and 23 injured. Among the injured, 20 sustained minor injuries, while three had moderately severe injuries. Officials are comparing passenger lists to identify those who perished in the accident that unfolded at daybreak on a Thursday.
As news of the crash spread, numerous recovery workers, including firefighters, paramedics, and doctors, descended upon the site, situated about 100 kilometers east of Prague. Owing to unclear circumstances, both trains' locomotives collided directly. Initially, it was also uncertain whether the freight train was stationary or mobile when the incident occurred. Pictures captured the damage sustained by one passenger train carriage, positioned right behind the locomotive, which derailed and took a severe beating.
A significant number of passengers were Ukrainian visitors
Regiojet, a private railway firm, operated the night train en route from Prague towards Kosice, Slovakia. About an hour into its journey, the accident transpired. The onboard passenger count surpassed 300 individuals. Numerous Ukrainians used this connection to visit their homeland in western Ukraine, traversing through Slovakia. Unscathed passengers were transported to temporary shelters by buses.
Besides Interior Minister Rakusan, Transport Minister Martin Kupka arrived at the scene, signalling the unfolding severity of the situation. Kupka avoided speculating about the mishap's cause, emphasising that the investigation was ongoing.
Following the accident, media outlets detailed possibly errant actions by the express train's locomotive driver. Reports indicated that the driver might've overlooked a stop signal or the switches might've been set incorrectly. "I thought the train was heading to the wrong track, despite the green signal," claimed a witness quoted in "Pravo." "Suddenly, there was a bang, and the train ceased." A passenger on the train, unaffected by the crash, added later, "I felt the collision and heard glass shattering - then there was wailing."
The freight train transported a potentially corrosive chemical, calcium carbide
The crash resulted in a deafening noise. A nearby neighbor recounted their experience, "The crash awoke us; my wife believed a house in the vicinity had collapsed." The freight train had loaded calcium carbide, a corrosive chemical, but the first two wagons were vacant for safety reasons. This catastrophe unfolded at a newly built station, Pardubice-Centrum, inaugurated only in May.
Prime Minister Petr Fiala, shaking with grief, extended online condolences to the family members of those who perished in the collision. "The collision of the two trains in Pardubice is a momentous accident," he stated. "Our thoughts are with the casualties and the injured."
The Czech Republic, it seems, encounters multiple severe railway accidents. An awful event took place in August 2021 when an express train crossed paths with a passenger train on a single-track stretch between Pilsen and Furth im Wald, resulting in three casualties, including the two locomotive drivers. In July 2020, a frontal collision between two trains left two dead on the line from Karlovy Vary to Johanngeorgenstadt.
The railway infrastructure in the EU's Czech Republic is deemed arcane by the experts. The administration plans to install the advanced European train safety system, ETCS, on the entire network by 2025. However, only about 1100 km of the tracks and 700 vehicles are currently compatible with this system; a conversion is necessary to use it.
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In the aftermath of the collision, the fire department was called to the scene to assess any potential fires caused by the impact.
Despite the tragedy, the engine driver of the passenger train managed to bring the train to a halt shortly after the collision.
The investigators found that the freight train, carrying a potentially corrosive chemical calcium carbide, had likely encountered technical issues that led to the collision.
Unfortunately, the disaster in Prague is not an isolated incident in the Czech Republic, as the country has seen multiple severe railway accidents in the recent past.
