Swiss train collision kills driver, injures at least 35 (VIDEO)

GlobalPost
Updated on
The World

Two commuter trains collided head-on in western Switzerland on Monday, killing one of the drivers and injuring at least 35. Five people are in serious condition.

Previously, local media had reported that 44 people were injured, but the Swiss police offered a revised number.

The driver's body was recovered from the wreckage early on Tuesday morning, after emergency workers separated the two locomotives, BBC News reported. The other driver is among the injured.

More from GlobalPost: Train crash overshadows biggest day for Spain's Santiago de Compostela

The collision happened between the cities of Moudon and Payerne at about 6:50 p.m. local time.

"We don't know why this crash happened," said Swiss Federal Railways spokesman Reto Schaerli. "There is currently no train service between these two cities until midnight tonight at least."

Rescue operations were still underway late on Monday at the site of the collision, which happened on a regional line about 31 miles southwest of the Swiss capital of Bern.

Pictures on local news website 24 Heures showed the wreckage of the two trains still on the tracks.

The daily's correspondent in Brussels, Geoffrey Hulsens, also tweeted a photo of rescue workers at the site of the collision.

Earlier this month, a train derailed in Spain after it took a curve going twice the allowed speed, killing 80 people.

Amateur video of the collision aftermath was posted on YouTube:

Sign up for our daily newsletter

Sign up for The Top of the World, delivered to your inbox every weekday morning.