55 killed in Cameroon train derailmen

AFP, YAOUNDÉ: Fifty-five people were killed and almost 600 injured when a packed Cameroon passenger train derailed on Friday, leaving debris strewn across nearby tracks as carriages swung off the rails.The train, travelling from the capital Yaounde to the economic hub Douala, was crammed with people due to road traffic disruption between the two cities and came off the tracks just before reaching the central city of Eseka, transport minister Edgar Alain Mebe Ngo’o said.The minister, via state broadcaster CRTV, said 55 people had been confirmed dead and a further 575 were injured in the incident, updating an earlier toll.“The cause of the accident is not yet clear,” he said, adding that several of the injured were in a very serious condition.“Intervention and security teams have been mobilised,” the rail company Camrail, a subsidiary of French investment group Bollore, announced.Emergency services had been sent from the economic capital to reinforce teams closer to the scene of the accident, while firefighters were coming from Eseka, Doula regional governor Dieudonne Ivaha Diboua said.

 

55 killed in Cameroon train derailmen

AFP, YAOUND: Fifty-five people were killed and almost 600 injured when a packed Cameroon passenger train derailed on Friday, leaving debris strewn across nearby tracks as carriages swung off the rails.The train, travelling from the capital Yaounde to the economic hub Douala, was crammed with people due to road traffic disruption between the two cities and came off the tracks just before reaching the central city of Eseka, transport minister Edgar Alain Mebe Ngoo said.The minister, via state broadcaster CRTV, said 55 people had been confirmed dead and a further 575 were injured in the incident, updating an earlier toll.The cause of the accident is not yet clear, he said, adding that several of the injured were in a very serious condition.Intervention and security teams have been mobilised, the rail company Camrail, a subsidiary of French investment group Bollore, announced.Emergency services had been sent from the economic capital to reinforce teams closer to the scene of the accident, while firefighters were coming from Eseka, Doula regional governor Dieudonne Ivaha Diboua said.