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60 reported dead in Congo train crash

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Wednesday, June 23, 2010

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60 people are reported to have died, with several hundred more injured, after a train in Congo derailed.

The incident happened Monday night, according to the railroad company, Chemin de Fer Congo-Ocean. The incident is believed to have occurred as the train rounded a curve in a remote part of the Congo, around 37 miles (60 km) from Pointe-Noire. Four railcars are reported to have fallen into a ravine.

The city of Pointe-Noire (station pictured) is on the Congolese coast
Image: Unsonique (Wikimedia Commons).

A spokesperson for the government, Bienvenue Okiemy, said that "excess speed" had been the cause of the derailment.

Officials said 60 bodies have been recovered, and a further 450 people are being treated for injuries at a hospital in Pointe-Noire. Okiemy commented that the death toll could still rise, "because searches and operations to lift wagons which fell into a ravine are still ongoing."

A railroad official said that "[t]he material damage was also very severe", adding that "[a]ll steps have been taken to organise relief."

The incident is the third major train crash on the line in two decades. In 1991, a passenger train collided with a freighter, killing around 100 people, and in 2001, another collision killed around 50 people.


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Articles presented on Wikinews reflect the specific time at which they were written and published, and do not attempt to encompass events or knowledge which occur or become known after their publication.

Got a correction? Add the template {{editprotected}} to the talk page along with your corrections, and it will be brought to the attention of the administrators.

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