Glacier express crashes
Saturday July 24, 2010 - Email this article to a friend

The dead person has been confirmed as a 64-year old Japanese tourist.

The woman came from Osaka and next of kin are being informed.

This afternoon the Valais police have said that 9 people remain in a serious condition in hospital and there is particular concern for 2 of them.

The injured are being treated in 6 different hospitals in western Switzerland at Sierre, Martigny, Monthey, Vaud and even as far away as Geneva.

The 2 in a critical condition are being cared for at Sion hospital in the valley.

It is the worst rail accident, in a country known for its efficient rail system, in 4 years.

Tourist attractionIt is unclear exactly what happened but it appears 3 carriages of the train came off the track and 2 of the carriages rolled over.  They were at the rear of the train.

Most of the passengers on the train were Japanese tourists.

210 people were on board at the time.

For some video of the crash scene see this report on the BBC.

The accident occured near the town of Fiesch and Lax in the Conde Valley.

"It is surprising that the train derailed at this spot,there is no explanation yet," Jean-Marie Bornet, of the Valais police, told Swiss television.

The train was not moving fast and was on a gentle curve when the accident happened.

Rail accidents rare in SwitzerlandIt sparked a major rescue operation with helicopters ferrying the injured to nearby hospitals.

Heavy lifting gear was also brought it.

The train runs between Zermatt and St Moritz and travels through some of the most spectacular mountain scenery in the world with a glass roof in many carriages so people can enjoy the views.

Around a quarter of a million people use the service, mainly tourists, each year.

The route has been temporarily closed and a full investigation is underway.

The de-railed carriages are now being taken to a nearby warehouse where they will undergo a specialist examination according to accident investigators.

One theory is that a dramatic change in temperature may have affected the rails. 

It had been hot in Switzerland in the preceeding days but then, on Friday, it cooled down sharply and heavy rain showers fell.

This may have affected the lines themselves.

Of the injured people 28 are Japanese, 5 Swiss, 4 Spanish, 2 Austrian and a person from India.

The Swiss police are now contacting the embassies of all the injured people to update them.

One PlanetSKI reader in Switzerland has emailed us with her thoughts:

"The Swiss and English people living in Switzerland are shocked to hear the awful news of the crash between St Moritz and Zermatt.  Switzerland is so well known for it's efficiency and safety on the rails.  It is something that you don't expect to happen in Switzerland.  As soon as I heard the news I was in doubt as to it's origin.  Could it be that this could happen on the Swiss rails?  It has been very very hot recently and suddenly the temperature has plummeted with snow on the mountain tops and this may be a reason for the rail system to suddenly fail.  It is a huge tragedy and a freak of nature surely. I sincerely hope the casualties are kept to a minimum and my thoughts are with the families that have lost someone in this horrendous accident and those that are recovering from their injuries".

We will bring you an updated report on PlanetSKI later.

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