Prague: Four people were killed and dozens injured when an emergency train collided with a freight train in the Czech city of Pardubice, an emergency services spokesman said.
The express train was carrying more than 300 passengers, most of them foreigners.
Prime Minister Petr Fiala expressed his condolences on the social media platform, saying that the accident was a “great tragedy” and that “we all think about the victims and the injured.”
The Minister of Interior and Transport arrived at 01:00 on Thursday morning (2300 GMT Wednesday).
Interior Minister Wit Rakusan said most of the injuries were minor and passengers were evacuated to the train station building.
The express train, operated by the private company Regiojet, was heading to the town of Chop, in western Ukraine, near the border with Slovakia.
The timetable shows that the train departing from Prague at 1952 GMT should arrive in Pardubice at 2047 GMT.
After passing through Slovakia, it is expected to be in Chop at 0835 GMT on Thursday.
Czech television indicated that at least one of the carriages had escaped and the passengers had been taken to a bus near Pardubice’s main station.
Rakusan said, after Regiojet provides a list of passengers, it determines the passengers who gather at the train station.
Rescuers said nine professional and volunteer ambulances, two helicopters and more than 60 firefighters were deployed.
“Rescue operation was complicated because the first carriage was defective. This made it difficult to visit the injured,” firefighter Pavel Ber told reporters at the scene.
local fire department spokeswoman Wendula Horakova told Czech TV that the truck was carrying calcium carbide.
Transport Minister Martin Kupka said the cause of the accident was being investigated.
He added that the main rail corridor connecting Prague with the second Czech city of Brno and the third city of Ostrava will be closed for at least a few hours.
