Train crash near Brussels leaves 18 dead

On Feb. 15, two passenger trains collided in a head-on crash killing 15 men and three women during rush hour in Halle, southwest of Brussels, Belgium. With a total of 18 dead and 160 injured, authorities are working with the relatives of the victims to identify all of the dead bodies.

The cause of the accident is still unidentified, but officials said that one train reportedly missed a stop signal. The trains collided in Halle around 8:30 a.m. local time. Belgium’s track operator said that an investigation was still under way because of the difficulty and confusion of the accident.

Witnesses said that people were being thrown around the inside of the train violently. One passenger described that the “carriages compacted together” from the collision.

“The trains were carrying a total of 250 to 300 people,” a rail official said, AFP agency reported.

Emergency workers said there was a considerable amount of damage overhead to the power lines at the station in Buizingen, the district of Halle where the trains crashed.

Doctors began to treat the injured passengers at the scene of the crash, including amputations. Others were taken to the nearby hospitals. Passengers who were not injured as badly were taken to a nearby sport hall for treatment. Even now, there is still much confusion over how many dead and injured there are because of the wreckage.

The Associated Press reported that passenger Christian Wampach said, “It was a nightmare. We were thrown about for 15 seconds. There were a number of people inured in my car, but I think all the dead were in the first car.”

On Feb. 16, Belgian authorities held a crisis meeting to discuss the devastating event that happened the day before. Belgium’s military, the first department, medical services and other agencies attended the meeting. The provincial governor, Flemish Braband, chaired the meeting. The main issue they discussed was the identification of the dead passengers.

Train drivers went on strike in several areas of Belgium, complaining about the lack of information from officials concerning the crash.

Willmes Bennig from the ACOD in Brussels said, “Union members had gathered at the main rail station in Louven, just east of Brussels.”

The Belga news agency said strikers were blocking depots at Louven and 10 other towns, severely disrupting rail traffic.

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This entry was posted on Thursday, February 25th, 2010 at 8:00 AM and is filed under News.
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