A train that derailed in northwest Turkey due to heavy rain and landslide has killed 24 people on 8 July.
Carrying 362 passengers and six crew members onboard, the train was en route to Istanbul from Kapikule.
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According to Turkey Health Minister Ahmet Demircan, 318 people were left injured as a consequence of the incident, 124 of whom are being treated in nearby hospitals.
Search and rescue operations were completed at the site of the accident, Turkey deputy Prime Minister Recep Akdag told reporters.
Television footage from the scene showed rescue workers approaching the crash site and pulling victims out from the wreckage. It also showed that at least five out of the six carriages derailed following the accident.
The train started its journey from the Corlu district situated in the northwestern Turkish province of Tekirdag, nearly 120km west of Istanbul.
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By GlobalDataA statement from the prime minister’s office said the train had been involved in an accident following a landslide: “Unfortunately we have fatalities and casualties”.
“Our helicopter ambulances have reached the site,” said Gov. Mehmet Ceylan. “Many of those injured have been taken off the site.”
Turkey Transport Minister Ahmet Arslan said that the same route had been used by seven other trains earlier that day, but the rain had caused ‘extraordinary swelling’ and eroded the soil below the tracks, thereby leaving a gap under the tracks.
However, according to CNN Turk, the incident was the result of a collapsed bridge in Tekirdag.
The government has imposed restrictions on media coverage on Sunday due to security and public order issues, but the ban was suspended the next day.
The police have already called two train drivers for questioning over the accident, while the government has ordered judicial and administrative investigations.
