Santiago, Chile — At least two railway workers were killed and nine others injured Thursday when a freight train collided head-on with another train on a test run outside the capital of Chilia rare fatal accident in the South American country.
Police said they were investigating to determine the cause of the collision, which left the test car completely on top of the freight train. Authorities said they detained the driver of the test train and a rail operator for questioning on charges of manslaughter.
Photos and videos from the scene showed an overturned car several meters in the air above a badly mangled freight train. Two dozen emergency vehicles swarmed through the tangle of crushed metal while helicopters hovered over San Bernardo, a district just south of Santiago, the capital. Train service in Santiago remained suspended on Thursday after the accident.
The eight-car freight train was carrying 1,346 tons of copper, Chile’s main export product, and had some people on board, while the other train had 10 workers on board conducting a speed test, the state railway company said. .
Security camera footage showed that both trains were traveling at high speed when they collided with each other. It was not immediately clear why the test train had not been alerted to the approach of the freight train.
“We have to identify what the causes are and take the corresponding measures,” Transportation Minister Juan Carlos Muñoz told The Associated Press.
Authorities identified the two dead people as members of the freight train crew. Nine other people were injured, including four Chinese nationals who were driving the test train. Medical workers said six people remain hospitalized, including one in intensive care.
Heavy rains have hit Chile in recent days, causing flooding that has submerged hundreds of homes and displaced thousands of people. The downpour had largely subsided Thursday in Santiago and did not appear to have contributed to the collision.
Train accidents have become rare in Chile. The government significantly increased its safety awareness after a 2001 collision between a passenger train and a bus that killed 20 people and injured many more. The country has not had a fatal accident since then, although four derailments and other accidents in the last two decades have left dozens injured. ___
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