PRAGUE, Aug 5 (NNN-CTK) – Two trains collided in the south-western Czech Republic yesterday, killing at least three people and injuring dozens of passengers, including several in critical condition, local media reported.
Two of the dead are the train drivers. Among the injured, five people are in very serious condition and four in serious condition, a regional emergency service spokeswoman, said.
The accident occurred on the track, near the village of Milavce, shortly after 8:00 a.m. (0600 GMT), when a Western Express train from Munich, Germany, collided with a regional passenger train. For unknown reasons, the express train passed the signal at the “Stop” position, at the turnout and drove onto a single-track line, colliding with the passenger train.
The railway inspection is investigating the exact causes, according to Czech TV (CT) reports. It is not yet clear whether it was a driver’s or dispatcher’s mistake, or a technical failure.
The German express belongs to a private carrier, Die Landerbahn. In a press release, the carrier said that, it is responsible for the operation of trains only on German territory, and the journey where the accident occurred is in Czech Railways’ charge.
The traffic on the line where the trains collided is remotely controlled by a dispatcher. The track is equipped with signals and a relay safety device, CT reported. The ETCS system, the highest signaling device on domestic lines in the Czech Republic, that could automatically stop the train at a distance, was not installed on that line.
Securing domestic lines has been a long-discussed topic in the Czech Republic. According to the Ministry of Transport, the state wants to invest over 100 billion crowns (4.6 billion U.S. dollars) in the next 20 years, to further secure the lines, and most of the money should go to the installation of the system.– NNN-CTK
