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Several dead in Czech train crash Seven dead in Czech train crash
(about 8 hours later)
At least six people are reported to have died and many others have been injured after a train ran into a collapsed bridge in the Czech Republic. An international express train has hit a collapsed bridge in the Czech Republic, killing seven people and injuring around 70 more.
A railway spokesperson said the accident, near the eastern town of Studenka, was "a serious disaster". The EuroCity train - from the Polish city of Krakow to the Czech capital, Prague - was travelling at 140km/h (87 mph) before it hit the debris.
Firefighters are at the scene, helping remove the victims from the train, witnesses said. It was the Czech Republic's worst train accident for more than a decade.
The high-speed express train was travelling from the Polish city of Krakow to the Czech capital, Prague. The train had about 400 people on board when the accident happened in Studenka, near the north-east border with Poland.
"An international train from Krakow to Prague ran into a collapsed bridge which fell on the rails in the area of the town Studenka," Radek Joklik, a spokesperson for Czech Railways, told local media. Firefighters attended the scene, helping remove the victims from the train.
Initially, officials had suggested that ten people had been killed and 100 people injured during the crash. Both Czech Prime Minister Mirek Topolanek and his Polish counterpart, Donald Tusk, travelled to the site of what a railway spokesperson described as "a serious disaster".
Czech railways officials said the train hit part of a motorway bridge undergoing construction work which collapsed on to the track while the train was approaching or passing underneath, derailing three passenger carriages and the locomotive. Emergency brake
Reports suggested the train was travelling at speeds of 140km/h (87 mph) when it hit the bridge at 1030 local time (0830GMT). The accident happened when a motorway bridge undergoing construction work collapsed on to the track as the train was approaching at 1030 local time (0830GMT), Czech railways officials said.
Many injured It is clear that any financial compensation cannot relieve the pain and sadness of all those who have been affected by this event Czech PM Mirek Topolanek
The driver pulled the emergency brake when he saw the collapsed bridge, but the engine carriage and several passenger carriages were derailed by the debris.
Television images showed rescuers climbing into the green and white carriages to try to pull survivors out.Television images showed rescuers climbing into the green and white carriages to try to pull survivors out.
AFP reports that 16 fire brigade units with a total of 30 vehicles are at the crash site as well as ambulances and helicopters taking the injured to hospital. AFP news agency reported that 16 fire brigade units with a total of 30 vehicles attended the crash site, as ambulances and helicopters transported the injured to hospital.
An officer from the Czech fire service told Reuters that many people were injured in the crash.
"There are some dead, but we do not have precise numbers, because our people are rather devoting time to rescue those still alive," David Pridal said.
A spokeswoman for the local hospital said extra staff had been called in to deal with the injured train crash survivors.A spokeswoman for the local hospital said extra staff had been called in to deal with the injured train crash survivors.
"All staff have been called to service and we have freed a number of beds to make room for the injured," Anna Vidisevska told Reuters. The fatalities were five Czechs, a Pole and a Ukrainian, reports said.
Czech Television said approximately 400 people were on board the train at the time of the accident, including many young people travelling to a music festival in Pardubice. 'Find the culprit'
A reader told the BBC news website that the accident might have claimed even more lives had it not happened during the holiday period. Mr Topolanek said the initial priority was "to help those who have suffered".
"Only then, we will have time to thoroughly investigate the incident, to find the culprit and to eventually compensate [the victims]," he was reported as saying by Associated Press news agency.
"It is clear that any financial compensation cannot relieve the pain and sadness of all those who have been affected by this event."
Many on board were young people travelling to a music festival in Pardubice, Czech television reported.
The accident might have claimed even more lives had it not happened during the holiday period, according to a BBC news website reader.
"I travel by this train once a week when I'm travelling to school and it's always so overcrowded that there isn't even a place for standing," said Vladimir, by email."I travel by this train once a week when I'm travelling to school and it's always so overcrowded that there isn't even a place for standing," said Vladimir, by email.
The Czech Prime Minister Mirek Topolanek and his Polish counterpart Donald Tusk were reported to be on their way to the scene of the crash.
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Are you in the Czech Republic? Did you witness this accident? Send us your comments using the form below.
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