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Moscow Subway Crash Laid to Track Workers’ Mistake Moscow Subway Crash Laid to Track Workers’ Mistake
(34 minutes later)
MOSCOW — The snapping of one small, improperly installed wire caused the Moscow subway crash that killed 22 people, investigators said on Wednesday. The police arrested a senior track foreman and his assistant. MOSCOW — The snapping of one small, improperly installed wire caused a Moscow subway crash this week that killed 22 people, investigators said on Wednesday. The police arrested a senior track foreman and his assistant.
A new subway line is under construction near the site of the crash. When workers installed a switch that will eventually connect the new tracks to the existing line, instead of securing the switch properly, they held it in place with a piece of 3-millimeter-thick wire, according to a statement by the Investigative Committee, a Russian law enforcement organization. The wire broke, causing the accident, the statement said. A new subway line is under construction near the site of the crash. When workers installed a switch that will eventually connect the new tracks to the existing line, instead of securing the switch properly, they held it in place with a piece of wire three millimeters wide, according to a statement by the Investigative Committee, a Russian law enforcement organization. The wire broke, causing the accident, the statement said.
Investigators identified the detained men as Valery Bashkatov and Yuri Gordov. The authorities are preparing unspecified charges against the two, the statement said. The investigators said they were also examining whether the contracting company that employed the men was licensed to work in the Moscow subway tunnels.Investigators identified the detained men as Valery Bashkatov and Yuri Gordov. The authorities are preparing unspecified charges against the two, the statement said. The investigators said they were also examining whether the contracting company that employed the men was licensed to work in the Moscow subway tunnels.
It was unclear whether workmen crimped the switch in place with wire to cut corners and save money, or because they did not have appropriate fasteners, or simply as a temporary measure until the new line is completed. It was unclear whether workmen crimped the switch in place with wire to cut corners and save money, because they did not have the appropriate fasteners, or simply as a temporary measure until the new line is completed.
The Investigative Committee said on Wednesday that two more victims of the crash had died, raising the toll to 22 from the 20 reported on Tuesday, the day of the crash. Another 136 people were hospitalized, some with grave injuries. The Investigative Committee said on Wednesday that two more victims of the crash had died, raising the toll to 22 from the 20 reported on Tuesday, the day of the crash. An additional 136 people were hospitalized, some with grave injuries.
The derailing of the train has become the grim talk of the Russian capital. About half of all Moscow commuters ride the subway to work daily, according to city statistics, and there are widespread complaints about overcrowding. The mayor, Sergei S. Sobyanin, has made expansion of the system a centerpiece of his transportation policy.The derailing of the train has become the grim talk of the Russian capital. About half of all Moscow commuters ride the subway to work daily, according to city statistics, and there are widespread complaints about overcrowding. The mayor, Sergei S. Sobyanin, has made expansion of the system a centerpiece of his transportation policy.
Also touching a nerve for the Russians was the suggestion of a cavalier attitude about safety, a fatalistic view — maybe that wire will hold, or maybe it won’t — that runs deep in this country’s culture, and which many Russians recognize all too well in themselves. Also touching a nerve for the Russians was the suggestion of a cavalier attitude about safety, a fatalistic view — maybe that wire will hold, or maybe it won’t — that runs deep in this country’s culture, and that many Russians recognize all too well in themselves.
On the streets of the Russian capital, one of the largest cities in Europe, manholes go uncovered, icicles plummet down on pedestrians in winter, and giant sinkholes caused by faulty water mains open from time to time, swallowing cars and people.On the streets of the Russian capital, one of the largest cities in Europe, manholes go uncovered, icicles plummet down on pedestrians in winter, and giant sinkholes caused by faulty water mains open from time to time, swallowing cars and people.
In a gesture to nerve-jangled riders, the entire subway system was free on Wednesday; the usual fare is about $1. The system, whose first lines opened in 1935, is among the largest in the world, famed for its elegant stations adorned with Socialist Realist art. About nine million people ride the underground trains on a typical work day. In a gesture to nerve-jangled riders, rides on the entire subway system were free on Wednesday; the usual fare is about $1. The system, whose first lines opened in 1935, is among the largest in the world, famed for its elegant stations adorned with Socialist Realist art. About nine million people ride the underground trains on a typical workday.