Two killed as train hits truck, derails in central Vietnam

By Le Hoang   May 23, 2018 | 07:05 pm PT
Around 400 train passengers, including many foreigners, were transferred to a station one kilometer away.

Two people were killed and 10 others were seriously injured when a train collided with a dumper truck in the central province of Thanh Hoa after midnight on Thursday.

The accident happened at a level crossing at around 0:30 a.m. when the truck tried to cross the railroad in Tinh Gia District just as the train carrying over 400 passengers traveling from Hanoi to Da Nang was approaching.

Nguyen The Hung, 42, the train driver, and his unidentified assistant were killed. The 10 injured passengers were sent to hospital for treatment.

The train's locomotive was severed and seven of its cars derailed, blocking the vital north-south railway. The truck was knocked off 10 meters away from the level crossing.

Rescue workers were dispatched to the site at 7 a.m. Authorities said all passengers, including many foreigners, have been transported to a station around one kilometer away to continue their journey.

The cause of the accident is under investigation.

Rescue workers are sent to the scene to repair the heavily damaged track. Photo by Le Hoang. 

Rescue workers are sent to the scene to repair the heavily damaged track. Photo by Le Hoang

Official statistics shows about 83 railroad incidents occurred across the country in the first three months of 2018, down 16.2 percent from a year ago.

A report by the Vietnam Railway Company showed that there are 5,793 level crossing points across the country. Out of those, only 641 have stationed guards, 366 have automatic alarms and 507 have warning signs.

 
 
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