2014 Moscow Metro derailment
 | This article documents a current event. Information may change rapidly as the event progresses, and initial news reports may be unreliable. The latest updates to this article may not reflect the most current information. |
| 2014 Moscow Metro derailment | |
|---|---|
 A 81-740/741 series train, similar to that involved in the accident. | |
 | |
| Details | |
| Date | 15 July 2014 |
| Location | Moscow |
| Coordinates | 55°44′11″N 37°30′56″E / 55.73639°N 37.51556°E |
| Country | Russia |
| Line |  Arbatsko-Pokrovskaya line |
| Operator | Moscow Metro |
| Statistics | |
| Deaths | 21 [1] |
| Injured | 160 (estimated) |
On 15 July 2014, at around 8:45 am, an outbound Moscow Metro train derailed between Park Pobedy and Slavyansky Bulvar stations of the Arbatsko-Pokrovskaya Line. Casualties reported include 21 dead and 160 injured. The Moscow Metro is one of the busiest metro systems in the world, and while accidents are common, they do not usually result in fatal injuries. Despite the metro being a frequent target, authorities do not suspect terrorism to be the cause of the accident.
Background
The Moscow Metro is one of the busiest in the world,[2] serving up to nine million passengers on a daily basis. It covers 325.4 kilometres (202.2 mi) of track, and includes more than 194 stations.[1] Despite having a reputation for reliability, the system has been increasingly suffering from mismanagement, cost-cutting practices, poor maintenance and outages in recent years.[3]
Accident
Early reports cited a power surge as the cause of the accident, but this has not been confirmed and remains under investigation.[4] Passengers on the train described cars striking one another, with most of the impact occurring at the front of the train as the leading cars piled up on each other.[5] Derailment occured 300 meters away from the Park Pobedy station near railroad switch to unused path of Kalininskaya Line. First 3 cars collided with tunnel walls and were badly damaged.
Twenty-one people were killed in the accident,[6] and more than fifty remained in "serious condition". Two hundred people were evacuated from the Metro; those with injuries were attended to close by. Initial reports stated that an additional 20 passengers remained underground, trapped in one of the cars. A spokesperson for the transport commission indicated that all passengers were "evacuated from the affected stations by midday".[5][2] Terrorism is not suspected in this case.[6]
This accident is the deadliest and the second fatal accident in the history of the system attributed to technical failure, after the 1982 Aviamotornaya escalator accident.[7]
Investigation
The official representative of the Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation Vladimir Markin said the investigation is considering several causes for the accident. All of them are technical, there being no connection with terrorist attacks. He stated that for technogenic accidents, certain people would be investigated and suspects would be identified soon.[8]
References
- ^ a b "21 killed, over 160 injured as Moscow Metro carriages derail in rush hour". Russia Today. 15 July 2014. Retrieved 15 July 2014.
- ^ a b "Russia derailment: '12 dead' in Moscow metro crash". BBC News. 15 July 2014. Retrieved 15 July 2014.
- ^ "Куда катится столичное метро?" (in Russian). 29 April 2014. Retrieved 15 July 2014.
{{cite news}}: Unknown parameter|trans_title=ignored (|trans-title=suggested) (help) - ^ "Версия скачка напряжения, как причины аварии в метро, не подтверждается" (in Russian). Nezavisimaya Gazeta. ITAR-TASS. 15 July 2014. Retrieved 15 July 2014.
{{cite news}}: Unknown parameter|trans_title=ignored (|trans-title=suggested) (help) - ^ a b "Train derailment on Moscow metro kills rush hour commuters". The Telegraph. Reuters. 15 July 2014. Retrieved 15 July 2014.
- ^ a b "Subway derailment in Moscow kills 19; terrorism not suspected". Globe and Mail. The Associated Press. 15 July 2014.
- ^ "Авария эскалатора на станции "Авиамоторная"". metro.molot.ru (in Russian). Retrieved 31 August 2010.
{{cite web}}: Unknown parameter|trans_title=ignored (|trans-title=suggested) (help) - ^ "Death toll rises to 20 in Moscow metro crash — EMERCOM". ITAR-TASS. 15 July 2014.