5 Dead, 5 Injured In Bus-Train Collision In Slovakia
Osabuohien Vivian Rose
Five people have been killed after a train and a bus collided in Slovakia.
A further five were injured in the southern town of Nove Zamky, 68 miles east of the capital, Bratislava, emergency services said via Facebook.
The train’s engine was on fire, video footage showed, while the bus was badly damaged, railway officials said.
None of the five deaths were among train passengers, railway company ZSSK said.
The injured were treated at hospitals in nearby towns and cities because the local one was closed after parts of it were flooded following heavy rain overnight.
The train driver, a Czech national, escaped with light burns, Czech Railways said. The other four injured were railway passengers.
Authorities are investigating, while the crossing where it happened is protected by gates.
More than 100 people were on board the Eurocity service when the accident happened shortly after 5pm local time (4pm BST), ZSSK added.
It was travelling from the Czech capital, Prague, to the Hungarian capital of Budapest.
Dozens of stranded passengers are being taken by bus to the town of Sturovo on the Hungarian border, ZSSK said.
The main railway track linking Bratislava and Budapest has been closed.
Interior minister Matus Sutai Estok is heading to the crash site, police said.
The president of Slovakia, Peter Pellegrino, offered his condolences.
“I wish the injured a speedy recovery and thank the doctors and rescue teams for their work,” he said.
“I wish that such catastrophes would avoid Slovakia in the future.”
