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Amsterdam train collision

Jane McintoshApril 21, 2012

Up to 125 people have been injured in a rail crash in Amsterdam after two trains traveling on the same line crashed head on. So far, there is no explanation about how the accident happened.

https://p.dw.com/p/14j2Q
Rescue workers evacuate injured passengers at the scene of a train collision near Amsterdam
Image: picture-alliance/dpa

Two passenger trains collided in Amsterdam on Saturday evening leaving up to 125 passengers injured, police said. Ambulances were quickly on the scene, with the badly injured taken to hospitals and those slightly injured to a hotel in Amsterdam.

National Police Corps spokesman Ed Kraszewski told Amsterdam local news network AT5 that some 70 people had minor injuries and 51 were "seriously or very seriously injured." He said the victims sustained broken bones and neck injuries.

The Dutch rail network operator Prorail said injuries ranged from scratches to broken bones.

The accident happened at around 6.30 pm local time when a local train leaving Amsterdam hit a high-speed train according to Dutch rail network spokeswoman Babet Verstappen.

Emergency personnel were treating the wounded at the scene, on a bridge between Sloterdijk and Amsterdam Central Station, Verstappen added.

First pictures after the accident showed both trains still on the rails. They appear to have collided head-on.

The Dutch national rail company, Nederlandse Spoorwegen has not yet issued a statement as to how two trains could travel toward each other on the same line.

Train traffic was disrupted around western Amsterdam and trains between the central station and Schiphol Airport were halted.

jm/rc (AP, AFP, EFE, dpa, Reuters)