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Italian gas train explodes and kills 10 in inferno
Nick Pisa, in Rome30 Jun 2009
At least 10 people, including a child, were killed and 35 seriously injured when an Italian train carrying gas derailed and a carriage exploded.
Most of the victims were in two buildings near the blast which collapsed, while one died as he rode past on a scooter.
Emergency crews were still searching the debris for survivors today, but officials said they expected to find only bodies as several people were still unaccounted for.
Witnesses reported at least three explosions, which were felt 300 yards away, after two wagons of the 14-coach train derailed as it passed through the Tuscan seaside town of Viareggio. There were 300 firemen from across the province tackling the flames, which were still burning at 6am, six hours after the crash.
One witness told Italian TV news: “It was horrible — I heard a terrific explosion and ran out of the building where I work and saw a burnt body.
“There were flames everywhere and this body was by a scooter, horribly burnt, there was nothing I could do. What I saw will stay with me for ever. The only thing I could do was cover the body with a sheet.”
The train's two drivers escaped and told officials in hospital their cabin “filled with gas” as the train derailed.
Investigators were looking at the possibility that one of the wheel arches gave way. Maurizio Manzo, police chief of Viareggio, said: “An investigation has begun into what caused the derailment and we will be working with staff from the railway. Searches are still continuing and we have found three children alive in one of the collapsed buildings.”
Seven victims, including the child, were killed in their homes, said Raffaele Gargiulo, a police spokesman in the nearby city of Lucca. Two drivers on the road next to the tracks were killed and the 10th victim, a young man, died in hospital.
“The condition of the bodies is such that it will be very difficult to identify them,” said Mr Gargiulo.
Videos uploaded to YouTube showed a huge plume of fire and smoke towering above Viareggio's low houses.
