Four people were killed and 67 others injured in a train
collision in Turkey's northwestern Kocaeli Province, Turkish Prime
Ministry Emergency Management Directorate General said on
Wednesday.
The Emergency Management Directorate General said in a statement
that "the accident occurred at 16:30 local time (1330 GMT) after a
train traveling from Ankara to Istanbul failed to stop at the red
light and collided head-on with the Adapazari Express."
The two trains, Baskent Express and Adapazari Express, collided
near Tavsancil hamlet of Gebze town in northwestern Kocaeli
Province.
Baskent Express departed from Ankara, capital of Turkey, to
Istanbul, the largest city of Turkey. Adapazari Express departed
from Istanbul, heading to the city of Adapazari in the
northwest.
The train traveling from Ankara was carrying 171 passengers and
nine crew members, the Anatolia news agency said.
Many ambulances raced to the site, and rescue teams have pulled
out the bodies from the railway cars, said the report.
Adapazari Express was severely damaged with many passengers
being trapped inside, Turkish private NTV reported.
The injured were rushed to hospitals nearby for treatment.
On July 22, a high-speed train from Istanbul to Ankara derailed
in northwestern Turkey, killing 39 people and injuring 80
others.
(Xinhua News Agency August 12, 2004)