Dozens of people have been injured in the collision of two trains in the Russian capital Moscow. Local media reported on Saturday that a train going from Moscow to the Belarusian city of Brest collided with a suburban train, which had stopped after using its emergency brakes to avoid hitting an individual on the rail tracks.

The commuter train reportedly remained on the tracks for some 20 minutes with its lights off. The long-distance train, which had been closely following the commuter train, then crashed into it. It was not clear whether any attempt had been made by the suburban train to communicate that it was stopping on the tracks and to notify other trains using the same path.

Four carriages were derailed in the collision, with one of them going upside down. The bang was “very strong,” an eyewitness of the crash told local media. “We were standing in the vestibule and felt a sharp blow. Very strong,” he told Moscow 24 TV channel. Some 170 fire and rescue workers were deployed to the site and evacuated all the passengers, 50 of whom sought medical aid.

Moscow Mayor Sergey Sobyanin said 14 people remained in hospital in the aftermath of the collision. Several of the victims are said to be in critical condition. Foreigners were among the injured, according to Emergencies Minister Vladimir Puchkov. “According to preliminary data, the injured include both Russian nationals and citizens of several countries,” he said.

Presstv