Railway Tragedy on Iasi Rail Region Area

On February 20, the current year, between Tecuci and the locality Munteni, within Galati district, there was produced the most terrible railway accident from the last years, which was ended with eight deceased persons and several injured persons. A bus that was transporting the commuters has been hit grease lighting, at a level crossing over the railway, by the fast train no. 1562, which was operating on Iasi - Brasov route.

The bus that was linking Tecuci and the village Munteni within Galati district has left according to its regular schedule. It was transporting 18 passengers, the majority commuters and village inhabitants, who went shopping in town.
According to the first investigations of the police bodies, at 14:40 p.m., the driver of the bus, Valentin Adam, having "only a seven months experience", ignored, just like that, the light signals, as well as the sonorous signals, which were announcing the approaching of the train. The accident would not be ended with such disastrous consequences if the engine of the bus has refused to operate any longer at the level crossing with the railway.
The impact was terrible: the bus was hit grease lighting and dragged from the halt area, where the collision has been produced, for almost 500 meters! The passengers were practically "blown" through the windows. On the respective distance the image was terrifying: along the railway were lying in disorder pieces of metal and human bodies and many other objects…
The intervention forces - those of the disassembling firemen teams and the ambulances - have reached in less than 20 minutes, while the bodies have been helpless lying on the embankment of the railway. The injured persons have been transported urgently to the hospitals in Tecuci and Galati. According to the declaration of Mr. Nicolae Bacalbasa, the physician of the Emergency Hospital in Galati, among the injured persons there were two women who have suffered serious injuries, one of them being in a profound coma and needing brain surgery interventions. On the halls of the hospital were waiting, with their souls broken of suffering, refusing to believe and hoping that a miracle will still happen, the relatives and the acquaintances of the victims of this accident. A father, driven mad of suffering, with his eyes in tears, pulling up his hair, succeeded to mumble just a few words: "he is my only child…general medicine physician…he was a commuter for 11 years,… he is married…, he has a five years old child".
The minister Mr. Miron Mitrea, reached in Galati a few hours later together with a delegation of the ministry and CFR SA, declared himself astonished by the sinister image from the place of the accident. In his opinion, this accident is the consequence of an irresponsible action, taking into consideration the fact that in the respective place there was mounted one of the most modern light and acoustic signaling equipment. " It's a very serious deed what the driver has done. I cannot figure it out how such persons, who do not respect the traffic rules, are in charge with driving the bus. In the present case it is about the violation of the most certain circulation rule, to stop at the red light of the indicator. This tragedy could have even more serious consequences, taking into consideration the fact that the train operating with 90-95 km/h could have run off the rails. The engine driver has no guilt; on the contrary, he will be granted with a special merit because he succeeded to react in such a way that the entire train set did not run off the rails. The lack of discipline of the driver will have penal consequences, but, unfortunately, any punishment that will be applied to him will not bring back the deceased persons".
The irresponsibility of a driver has crushed destinies, has cause mourning for the families, has emptied the lives of some people, has marked their souls for ever… Through the persons who have lost their lives in this accident was also the headmaster of the school in the village, an English language teacher, and a 25 years school mistress and two young men that have just been married a month ago… Let them rest in peace! And let that such terrible tragedies never happen again!

Egyptian Railway in Mourning

In the eve of the biggest Moslem Holidays, the Great Party, almost 400 people have lost their lives being burned alive in the biggest railway calamity in the history of Egypt.

The crammed train that was heading towards Luxor, a town situated at almost 70 kilometers south from the Egyptian capital, Cairo. Hundreds of families were going home in order to celebrate the great Moslem Holidays of the sacrifice (astonishing coincidence!), which points out the conclusion of the annual pilgrimage towards Mecca - the most important religious event of Egypt.
The fire has burst out a while after the train has left the Egyptian capital, in the proximity of the locality Al Ayyatt. The flames have been started in a first class coach and have advanced immediately towards the entire train set. The train set did not stop: it has advanced seven more kilometers! The draught has intensified the fire. Terrified, tenth of passengers have tried to escape by jumping from the windows of the train, but they were crushed on the earth. And others, stiffed between the bars of the windows, have been burned alive or they have died asphyxiated.
At the place of the accident there have come at least 20 firemen vehicles and tenth of firemen, who have succeeded to burn out the fire. Many injured persons transported to the hospital have been hospitalized with serious burns. The identification of the victims by the intervention teams has been practically impossible, due to fact that the bodies were baked. The authorities have been announced that among the victims were also foreign tourists travelling, especially due to the fact that poor Egyptians usually use the respective local route.
A 22 years old young man, who has survived by jumping from the train which was set on fire (having only a broken arm and being hospitalized in a hospital situated in the proximity of the place where the calamity was produced), was telling the moments of terror that he has experienced:" I have never thought for a minute that I will escape safely. The train had a stunning speed and I was sure that I would be crushed on the earth. I did not want to be burned alive".
Pursuant to the first investigations, the investigators have launched the idea that the explosions of a gas bottle from the restaurant wagon and an electric stove, used frequently by the passengers in order to prepare their tea or coffee during the travel, have caused the tragedy.
The eyewitnesses have confirmed the fact that the floor of the coaches was completely covered with a thick layer of ashes, and the firemen have described the place of the catastrophe as a real hell.
The biggest catastrophes that have happened on the railways: 1989 - Bangladesh, 135 deceased persons; 1989 - URSS, 575 deceased persons; 1991 - Mozambic, 109 deceased persons; 1998 - Germany, 101 deceased persons; 1999 - India, 285 deceased persons; 2000 - Austria, 155 deceased persons.

Romanians, Offenders in the French Trains

At the end of January, five Romanians have been arrested due to the fact that they were helping clandestine immigrants to reach in Great Britain, through the English Channel. They were shunting the train signals in order to stop it, during the night, in grease lighting field, At Hazebrouk, in the north of France, the freight trains which were going towards England through the tunnel under the English Channel. The Romanians, who were using a certain type of instrument in order to operate the stopping signals of the trains, having a length of 700 meters, which were circulating only during the night. Weekly, they were causing one or two stops, finally being responsible for more than 30 such incidents on a 40 kilometers railway section between Hazebrouk and the beginning of the railway tunnel under the sea.
Presently being in the preventive custody at the constabulary in Hazebrouk, for their deeds, the five Romanians could be the subjects of the judicial investigation, under the accusation of granting help for the circulation of foreign illegal citizens.

Magda Olaru