Several injured by Austrian train derailment
July 9, 2021
Austrian media showed schoolkids clambering out of the toppled wagon as it lay slightly submerged in the Mur River on their last school day before summer vacation.
Rescuers quoted by public ORF broadcasting said 15 people had been injured, of which four had been taken to local hospitals. No one was reported missing, but downriver a search was continuing.
The narrow-gauge diesel-powered train, carrying 50 passengers, mostly pupils and students, derailed in Lungau district, just inside Austria's Salzburg Alpine state.
Heading to Tamsweg
On-board had been pupils and students from neighboring Styria state, heading to Tamsweg in Salzburg state, an Alpine hub with primary and high schools and vocational training institutes.
The early morning emergency response included 10 ambulances and two helicopters sent by the Salzburg region's Red Cross, reported the Austrian news agency APA.
Mur Valley trains operate the 65-kilometer-long (40-mile) line from their base at Murau in Styria.
In summer, special trains are fitted with historic steam locomotives that draw tourists. The cross-border stretch prides itself on reducing fossil fuels usage to zero to benefit the climate, with Lungau offering a €1 ($1.18) public transport ticket.
ipj/sms (AP. dpa, AFP)