Nine critical after fatal UK train crash; driver killed
Translated from English, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.
At a glance
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Outcome reported
- Nine people remain in critical condition after a passenger train crash near Bedford, England, on Friday that killed one driver.
- Over 80 people received hospital treatment, with 28 still hospitalized as of Saturday morning.
- Investigators are working to determine the cause of the collision between two passenger trains.
A fatal train crash near Bedford on Friday evening has left nine people in critical condition, with over 80 individuals requiring hospital treatment. The driver of one of the two passenger trains bound for London died at the scene.
As of this morning, 28 remain in hospital, and nine are in a critical condition.
British Transport Police Chief Constable Lucy D'Orsi provided an update Saturday, stating that 28 people remained hospitalized, nine of them critically injured. Investigators are actively working to establish the cause of the accident, which occurred around 5:15 p.m. local time.
Images from the scene showed the damaged front of one train entangled with the rear of another. Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander emphasized that it was too early to speculate on the cause but vowed a thorough investigation. Passengers described a sudden, severe impact, with one recalling being hit hard from behind and seeing many wounded individuals.
His Majesty is greatly saddened by the rail crash in Bedford yesterday evening and is being kept regularly updated on developments. His thoughts and sympathies are with the family of the deceased and with all those injured or affected by such a tragic incident.
The East of England Ambulance Service reported that 11 people sustained very serious injuries, 32 suffered serious wounds, and 56 had minor injuries. The response involved over 20 ambulances, specialist rescue teams, and six air ambulances, with more than 70 firefighters also on site.
We had stopped, and suddenly we were hit from behind pretty bad.
Will Rogers, managing director of EMR, called it a "profoundly sad day for the railway community," expressing deep sorrow for the driver's death and the injuries sustained by others. He noted the train operator is fully cooperating with the investigation.
It was surreal the morning after... I don't know at whom. But it's more about (the fact) we've got one of the oldest railway networks and signal failures happen a lot... Why wasn't that signalled to my train?
DistantNews Editorial
Originally published by CNA in English. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.
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