At least 43 people were killed and several heavily injured in a train and bus collision near a small town in eastern Ukraine on Tuesday morning.
The catastrophe took place at a railroad crossing near the town of Marhanets, south of the main regional city of Dnipropetrovsk. The bus was dragged for about 1,000 feet (300 meters) along the track after the collision, according to officials.
There were 51 people in total in the bus. A few of the injured passengers later died in the hospital.
The bus driver reportedly ignored the alarm warning about the oncoming train, leading to the crash.
Witnesses said the bus had stopped in front of the railway tracks with the driver getting out to wait for a commuter train until it passed by, according to Segodnya newspaper. Then he got in the bus and started moving despite the traffic light showing red, they said.
“Surviving passengers say they tried to signal the driver that the warning alarm was sounding and that the bus should stop,” Ukraine’s transport minister Kostyantyn Yefimenko said, according to reports by Ukrainian news agencies.
Meanwhile, Ukraine’s interior ministry, citing the witnesses, said the bus engine had failed in the middle of the railway crossing and it was impossible to avoid the catastrophe.
Ukraine’s Railroad Officials said the train had seen the bus stop 1,649 feet (500 meters) ahead. Despite the train crew signaling, the bus started moving towards the track. The train driver used emergency braking 574 feet (175 meters) before the railway crossing, but actual braking distance should have been 2,000 feet (600 meters), the officials said.
The bus is one of a fleet of buses made by Etalon that are used in towns and cities across the country as well as for inter-city transportation. It has 25 seats and can carry more than 20 additional passengers standing.
The railway crossing was not secured and did not have any barrier, but all light alarm and sound warning were operational, officials said.
“A barrier was eliminated. After that crashes happen every year at the place. Traffic lights often break and always beam showing red, even if no trains are coming,” a local resident Vasily told the newspaper.
“We will be installing barriers at all railway crossings. It requires treating carriers seriously … What made him start driving?” said First Deputy Primer Minister told reporters
Ukrainian roads have low-security support because of their poor conditions.
Ukrainian President Victor Yanukovich has ordered an investigation into the accident, adding that the government will take action to improve safety in the transportation network.
Yanukovich also said the government would take actions in order to put to rights in private transportation network.
“We will certainly revise requirements for licensing, vehicle condition, adherence to transportation rules, and drivers’ qualifications,” he said.
The President of European Council Herman Van Rompuy has expressed his condolences to the families of the victims.
The catastrophe took place at a railroad crossing near the town of Marhanets, south of the main regional city of Dnipropetrovsk. The bus was dragged for about 1,000 feet (300 meters) along the track after the collision, according to officials.
There were 51 people in total in the bus. A few of the injured passengers later died in the hospital.
The bus driver reportedly ignored the alarm warning about the oncoming train, leading to the crash.
Witnesses said the bus had stopped in front of the railway tracks with the driver getting out to wait for a commuter train until it passed by, according to Segodnya newspaper. Then he got in the bus and started moving despite the traffic light showing red, they said.
“Surviving passengers say they tried to signal the driver that the warning alarm was sounding and that the bus should stop,” Ukraine’s transport minister Kostyantyn Yefimenko said, according to reports by Ukrainian news agencies.
Meanwhile, Ukraine’s interior ministry, citing the witnesses, said the bus engine had failed in the middle of the railway crossing and it was impossible to avoid the catastrophe.
Ukraine’s Railroad Officials said the train had seen the bus stop 1,649 feet (500 meters) ahead. Despite the train crew signaling, the bus started moving towards the track. The train driver used emergency braking 574 feet (175 meters) before the railway crossing, but actual braking distance should have been 2,000 feet (600 meters), the officials said.
The bus is one of a fleet of buses made by Etalon that are used in towns and cities across the country as well as for inter-city transportation. It has 25 seats and can carry more than 20 additional passengers standing.
The railway crossing was not secured and did not have any barrier, but all light alarm and sound warning were operational, officials said.
“A barrier was eliminated. After that crashes happen every year at the place. Traffic lights often break and always beam showing red, even if no trains are coming,” a local resident Vasily told the newspaper.
“We will be installing barriers at all railway crossings. It requires treating carriers seriously … What made him start driving?” said First Deputy Primer Minister told reporters
Ukrainian roads have low-security support because of their poor conditions.
Ukrainian President Victor Yanukovich has ordered an investigation into the accident, adding that the government will take action to improve safety in the transportation network.
Yanukovich also said the government would take actions in order to put to rights in private transportation network.
“We will certainly revise requirements for licensing, vehicle condition, adherence to transportation rules, and drivers’ qualifications,” he said.
The President of European Council Herman Van Rompuy has expressed his condolences to the families of the victims.
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