- Italy train crash inquiry will examine antiquated telephone alert system
- Stationmasters had to call each other to say when a train had departed on stretch of track where crash happened, killing at least 27 people
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| The total number of people who were travelling on the two trains is not yet known. Photograph: Videoplugger/Barcroft Images |
Delayed rail improvements and an antiquated telephone alert system
that relied on stationmasters calling each other to say when a trian had
departed will be considered as part of the investigation into the head-on train crash in southern Italy that killed at least 27 people on Tuesday, officials have said.
Union leaders and railway police blamed human error, for the crash,
noting that the particular stretch of track between the towns of Andria
and Corato didn’t have an automatic alert system that would engage if
two trains were close by and on the same track. Rather, the system
relied on stationmasters phoning one another to advise of a departing
train.
Firefighters and other emergency services are continuing to hunt
through the wreckage of the trains, which were travelling along a single
track between the towns of Corato and Andria when they collided at
about 11.30am.
The total number of people travelling on each of the four-carriage
trains is not yet known, although 50 people are estimated to have been
injured. The severity of some of the injuries means that the death toll
is likely to rise.
The vice-minister of transport, Riccardo Nencini, told RAI the lack
of an automated security system was probably one of the causes of the
crash.
Nicola Giorgino, the mayor of Andria, said the crash was particularly
tragic since work was to begin within a few months to build a second
track on the route.
The Trani prosecutor, Francesco Giannella, said the delay in the
track-doubling work would be part of the investigation. “We will
investigate the delays of the work on the line and the deficiencies in
the security system,” the Ansa news agency quoted Giannella as saying.
Last month, the private rail company operating the line,
Ferrotramviaria, announced a call for tenders to add a second track.
Since the accident there has been criticism that the slow pace of public
works in Italy meant the works were not carried out more promptly.
Ferrotramviaria issued a brief statement after the crash in which it
offered condolences to the families of victims and said the company felt
their pain. One of the train drivers is believed to be among the
victims, while the other is reported as being in a serious condition in
hospital.
Italy has hailed the rescue of a six-year-old boy, Samuele, who was
shown cartoons on a smartphone by a fireman while colleagues cut him
free from the wreckage. The boy asked about his grandparents, who remain
unaccounted for, Italian media reported.
Pope Francis on Wednesday sent a blessing to those affected by the crash.
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PLEASE BE POLITE