The collision of a passenger train with a parked locomotive left 60 people injured this Friday in Buenos Aires, 30 of them of varying severity, and the federal Justice Department is investigating the causes of the event, the origin of which raises doubts.
At 10:31 a.m. (1:31 p.m. GMT), a formation of the San Martín commuter line collided with a locomotive and an empty van car on a viaduct in the capital’s neighborhood of Palermo, according to the state company Trenes Argentinos in a statement.
According to emergency services sources, 90 people were evacuated from the seven cars of the passenger train, sixty of them were injured.
Of the sixty injured, 30 were taken to various hospitals due to their seriousness, including two with head trauma who were evacuated from the area by helicopter.
The head of Government of the City of Buenos Aires, Jorge Macri, highlighted the work of the evacuation operation and declared that everyone was “proud of the rapid response.”
The mayor of the capital did not want to comment on the possible causes, since, he argued, “there is not enough information on the development” of the accident.
According to the Trenes Argentinos statement, the incident took place “for reasons that are the subject of investigation and as a result of the incident, the empty train van and the locomotive and the first car of the passenger train derailed.”
As a result of the incident, the Retiro-Dr. Cabred, which connects Buenos Aires with the town of Open Door (province of Buenos Aires), only covers part of the route.
Emergency personnel from the City of Buenos Aires (SAME), Firefighters and Police intervened in the evacuation of the victims, of which, as confirmed by health sources, “none were fatal.”
