Passenger train collides with truck in Russia's Belgorod region

The locomotive and 4 carriages of a passenger train have derailed in a railway crossing accident in the Belgorod region, Central Russia, Russian Railways (RZD) told TASS on Friday.

According to an RZD source, the incident took place at 13:25pm, Moscow time at the 664-km railway crossing of the Prokhorovka-Belinikhino haul. The driver of a KAMAZ truck, disregarding the alarm signal, drove the vehicle into the rail crossing ahead of the approaching train.

"The locomotive driver in an emergency brake application tried to stop the train, but the distance to the truck was too short, so the collision could not be prevented," RZD said. So, the train that was en route from Moscow to Belgorod crashed into the truck.

According to the company, the locomotive and 4 passenger carriages derailed as a result of the accident, three contact-line masts were damaged and the adjacent track was also hit. "Train traffic on this section has been suspended," the source said. RZD said that according to preliminary reports, several passengers of the train have sought medical attention. The locomotive assistant driver and the truck driver were also injured.

Wrecking trains from the Belgorov and Kursk stations have been dispatched to the accident site to repair the damage. The RZD source also did not rule out passenger train delays due to the accident.