At least 22 people were killed, and around 80 others injured after a crane at a China-backed high-speed rail project in Thailand collapsed onto a passenger train on Wednesday, derailing it, local authorities said.
Footage from the scene verified by Agence France-Presse (AFP) showed the crane’s broken structure resting on giant concrete pillars, with smoke rising from the wreckage of the train below.
Rescuers worked to extract passengers from tilted carriages in Nakhon Ratchasima, northeast of the capital.
“At around 9:00 am, I heard a loud noise, like something sliding down from above, followed by two explosions,” said local resident Mitr Intrpanya, 54, who was at the scene.
“When I went to see what had happened, I found the crane sitting on a passenger train with three carriages,” he said. “The metal from the crane appeared to strike the middle of the second carriage, slicing it in half.”
Thatchapon Chinnawong, the district police chief, told AFP that 22 people had been confirmed dead and 80 more were injured. “We are now asking the hospital to say how many people are in critical condition,” he said.
The accident occurred at a construction site that is part of a $5.4-billion project backed by Beijing to build a high-speed rail network in Thailand, linking Bangkok to Kunming in China via Laos by 2028 under China’s Belt and Road initiative.
“A crane collapsed onto a train causing it to derail and catch fire,” the Nakhon Ratchasima provincial public relations department said in a statement.
Live footage aired by local media showed rescue workers rushing to the scene as smoke billowed from the derailed train. Authorities later paused rescue operations due to “chemical leakage” at the site, Thatchapon said.
The provincial department said the train was travelling from Bangkok to Ubon Ratchathani. Transport Minister Phiphat Ratchakitprakarn said 195 people were on board and ordered officials to determine the cause of the accident.
Industrial and construction site accidents remain common in Thailand, where safety regulations are often weakly enforced.
