2009-06-29
Train derails, explodes in Italy
(APW_ENG_20090629.1299)
1) A freight train has derailed just outside a station in an Italian town and two cars filled with gas have exploded, killing at least one person and injuring dozens.
2) The ANSA news agency reports the explosion and resulting fire engulfed several homes in the Tuscan town of Viareggio, collapsing two buildings, killing at least one person and injuring at least 50 people.
3) A person who answered the phone at Viareggio's firefighters headquarters early Tuesday confirmed a train had exploded before hanging up.
2009-06-30
Freight train derails, kills 2 in Italy
(APW_ENG_20090630.0055)
1) A freight train derailed just outside a station in an Italian town and two cars filled with gas exploded, killing at least two people and injuring dozens, officials and news reports said Tuesday.
2) The ANSA news agency reported the explosion and resulting fire engulfed several homes in the Tuscan town of Viareggio, collapsing two buildings, killing at least two and injuring at least 50 people.
3) The incident in the seaside resort occurred shortly before midnight Monday just after the 14-car convoy coming from La Spezia and headed for Pisa has passed through the station, ANSA said.
4) Videos uploaded on YouTube showed a huge inferno raging in the night, with the sound sirens and explosions piercing the air.
5) A person who answered the phone at Viareggio's firefighters headquarters early Tuesday confirmed a train had exploded and there were casualties before hanging up.
Freight train derails, kills 6 in Italy
(APW_ENG_20090630.0081)
1) Police say at least six people are dead and 30 injured after a freight train derailed and two cars filled with gas exploded just outside a station in an Italian town,
2) A police official says the explosion engulfed several homes in the Tuscan town of Viareggio, collapsing one building and setting fire to a vast area.
3) Five people were killed when their house collapsed, while a sixth victim was driving on a scooter along the rail line when the train derailed. At least 30 people were injured in the accident which occurred shortly before midnight on Monday in the seaside resort.
Freight train derails, kills 6 in Italy
(APW_ENG_20090630.0107)
1) A freight train derailed in the middle of a small Italian town and two cars filled with liquefied natural gas exploded, setting off an inferno that killed at least six people and injured more than 30, officials said Tuesday.
2) The cars plowed into several homes just outside the train station in the Tuscan seaside town of Viareggio, and the resulting explosion collapsed a building and set fire to a vast area.
3) Five people were killed when their house collapsed, while a sixth victim was riding a scooter along the rail line when the train derailed, said Raffaele Gargiulo, a police spokesman in the nearby city of Lucca, which is in charge of the smaller town of Viareggio.
4) Gargiulo told The Associated Press by telephone that more than 30 people were injured, with most suffering severe burns.
5) Videos uploaded on YouTube showed a huge plume of fire and smoke towering above Viareggio's low buildings. Images from the scene showed an inferno raging in the night, consuming buildings and cars, while the sound of sirens and explosions pierced the air.
6) The train coming from the northern city of La Spezia and heading for Pisa derailed just before midnight Monday shortly after passing through Viareggio's train station, Gargiulo said.
7) The train's two engineers were only lightly injured and were questioned in the hospital, saying they felt an impact some 600 feet (180 meters) outside the station, shortly before the train flew off the tracks.
8) Gargiulo said the incident may have been caused by damage to the tracks or a problem with the train's braking system.
9) Firefighters chief Antonio Gambardella told Italy's RAI state TV that the blaze was being contained but there was still the risk that other train cars containing gas would explode.
10) Firefighters were battling flames while digging through the rubble of collapsed or burnt homes looking for casualties, Gambardella said, adding that there could be more victims.
Freight train derails, kills 6 in Italy
(APW_ENG_20090630.0137)
1) Two cars filled with liquefied natural gas exploded when a freight train derailed in the middle of a small Italian town, setting off an inferno that killed at least six people and injured 50 others, officials said Tuesday.
2) The train cars plowed into several homes just outside the rail station in the Tuscan seaside town of Viareggio, and the resulting explosion collapsed a building and set fire to a vast area.
3) Five people were killed when their house collapsed, while a sixth victim was riding a scooter along the rail line when the train derailed, said Raffaele Gargiulo, a police spokesman in the nearby city of Lucca, which is in charge of the smaller town of Viareggio.
4) Lucca's top government official, Prefect Carmelo Aronica, told Italy's RAI state TV that at least 50 people were injured, 35 of whom were hospitalized with severe burns.
5) Videos uploaded on YouTube showed a huge plume of fire and smoke towering above Viareggio's low houses. Images from the scene showed an inferno raging in the night, consuming buildings and cars, while the sound of sirens and explosions pierced the air.
6) The train coming from the northern city of La Spezia and heading for Pisa derailed just before midnight Monday shortly after passing through Viareggio's train station, Gargiulo said.
7) The train's two engineers were only lightly injured and were questioned in the hospital, saying they felt an impact some 650 feet (200 meters) outside the station, shortly before the rear of the train flew off the tracks, Gargiulo said.
8) Gargiulo told The Associated Press by telephone that the incident may have been caused by damage to the tracks or a problem with the train's braking system.
9) Firefighters chief Antonio Gambardella told RAI that the blaze was being contained but there was still the risk that other train cars containing gas would explode. Hazardous materials teams specialized in dealing with nuclear, biological and chemical threats were being brought in to help.
10) Firefighters were battling flames while digging through the rubble of collapsed or burnt homes looking for casualties, Gambardella said, adding that there could be more victims. The ANSA news agency reported that three children were pulled alive from the rubble of their collapsed home shortly before daybreak Tuesday.
Freight train derails, kills 10 in Italy
(APW_ENG_20090630.0168)
1) A rail car filled with liquefied natural gas exploded when a freight train derailed in the middle of a small Italian town, setting off an inferno that killed at least 10 people and injured 50 others, officials said Tuesday.
2) The rear of the train plowed into a residential neighborhood just outside the rail station in the Tuscan seaside town of Viareggio, and the resulting explosion collapsed at least two buildings and set fire to a vast area.
3) Seven people, including a child, were killed at home by the collapses or the fire, said Raffaele Gargiulo, a police spokesman in the nearby city of Lucca, which is in charge of the smaller town of Viareggio.
4) Two drivers who were on the road alongside the tracks when the train derailed were killed. The 10th victim, a young man, died in the hospital, Gargiulo said.
5) "The condition of the bodies is such that it will be very difficult to identify them," he said.
6) Lucca's top government official, Prefect Carmelo Aronica, told Italy's RAI state TV that at least 50 people were injured, 35 of whom were hospitalized with severe burns. The ANSA news agency reported that three children were pulled alive from the rubble of their collapsed home shortly before daybreak Tuesday.
7) Videos uploaded on YouTube showed a huge plume of fire and smoke towering above Viareggio's low houses. Images from the scene showed an inferno raging in the night, consuming buildings and cars, while the sound of sirens and explosions pierced the air.
8) "It's an impressive scene, there are dozens and dozens of cars hit by the shock wave and collapsed houses," said firefighters spokesman Luca Cari.
9) The 14-car train carrying the liquefied gas was traveling from the northern city of La Spezia to Pisa. The train derailed just before midnight Monday shortly after passing through Viareggio's train station, Gargiulo said.
10) The train's two engineers were only lightly injured and were questioned in the hospital, saying they felt an impact some 650 feet (200 meters) outside the station, shortly before the rear of the train flew off the tracks, Gargiulo said.
11) He told The Associated Press by telephone that the incident may have been caused by damage to the tracks or a problem with the train's braking system.
12) Firefighters chief Antonio Gambardella told RAI that the blaze was being contained but there was still the risk that the other gas tanks would explode. Hazardous materials teams specialized in dealing with nuclear, biological and chemical threats were being brought in to help.
13) Some 300 firefighters were battling flames while digging through the rubble of collapsed or burnt homes looking for casualties, Gambardella said, adding that there could be more victims.
Freight train derails, kills 10 in Italy
(APW_ENG_20090630.0296)
1) A rail car filled with liquefied natural gas exploded when a freight train derailed in the middle of a small Italian town, setting off an inferno that killed at least 10 people and injured 50 others, officials said Tuesday.
2) The rear of the train plowed into a residential neighborhood beside the rail station in the Tuscan seaside town of Viareggio shortly before midnight Monday, and the resulting explosion collapsed at least two buildings and set fire to a vast area.
3) Some 300 firefighters were digging through the rubble of collapsed or burnt homes looking for casualties, amid fears that there could be more victims. As the firefighters worked to contain the blaze, teams specialized in dealing with nuclear, biological and chemical threats were being brought in to prevent the other gas tanks from exploding.
4) Officials said the fire was contained after several hours, but a smell of burning hung in the air.
5) "We saw a ball of fire rising up to the sky," said witness Gianfranco Bini, who lives in a building overlooking the station. "We heard three big rumbles, like bombs. It looked like war had broken out."
6) Seven people, including a child, were killed in their homes by the collapses or the fire, said Raffaele Gargiulo, a police spokesman in the nearby city of Lucca, which is in charge of the smaller town of Viareggio.
7) Two drivers who were on the road alongside the tracks when the train derailed were killed. The 10th victim, a young man, died in the hospital, Gargiulo said.
8) "The condition of the bodies is such that it will be very difficult to identify them," he said.
9) Lucca's top government official, Prefect Carmelo Aronica, told Italy's RAI state TV that at least 50 people were injured, 35 of whom were hospitalized with severe burns. The ANSA news agency reported that three children were pulled alive from the rubble of their collapsed home shortly before daybreak Tuesday.
10) About 1,000 people were evacuated from their homes as a precaution, town hall officials said. Tents were put up in the area around the town hall.
11) Videos uploaded on YouTube showed a huge plume of fire and smoke towering above Viareggio's low houses. Images from the scene showed an inferno raging in the night, consuming buildings and cars, while the sound of sirens and explosions pierced the air.
12) "It's an impressive scene, there are dozens and dozens of cars hit by the shock wave and collapsed houses," said firefighters spokesman Luca Cari.
13) The 14-car train carrying the liquefied gas was traveling from the northern city of La Spezia to Pisa.
14) The train's two engineers were only lightly injured and were questioned in the hospital, saying they felt an impact some 650 feet (200 meters) outside the station, shortly before the rear of the train flew off the tracks, Gargiulo said.
15) He told The Associated Press by telephone that the incident may have been caused by damage to the tracks or by a problem with the train's braking system.
Freight train derails, fire kills 13 in Italy
(APW_ENG_20090630.0307)
1) A train derailed and set off an explosion and fire in the middle of a small Italian town, killing at least 13 people -- many as they slept in their homes -- officials said Tuesday. More than 50 people were injured, many severely.
2) The rear of the freight train plowed into a residential neighborhood beside the rail station in the Tuscan seaside town of Viareggio shortly before midnight Monday, and a car filled with liquefied natural gas exploded, collapsing at least two buildings and setting fire to a vast area.
3) Some 300 firefighters were digging through the rubble of collapsed or burnt homes looking for casualties, amid fears that there could be more victims. As the firefighters worked to contain the blaze, teams specialized in dealing with nuclear, biological and chemical threats were being brought in to prevent the other gas tanks from exploding.
4) Officials said the fire was contained after several hours, but a smell of burning hung in the air.
5) "We saw a ball of fire rising up to the sky," said witness Gianfranco Bini, who lives in a building overlooking the station. "We heard three big rumbles, like bombs. It looked like war had broken out."
6) Some of the victims, including a child, were killed in their homes by the collapses or the fire, said Raffaele Gargiulo, a police spokesman in the nearby city of Lucca, which is in charge of the smaller town of Viareggio. Two drivers who were on the road alongside the tracks when the train derailed were also killed.
7) Others suffered severe burns and died at the hospital.
8) "The condition of the bodies is such that it will be very difficult to identify them," Gargiulo said.
9) The death toll stood at 13 by Tuesday morning, said Gennaro Tornatore, a spokesman for the firefighters. But he said the number of victims might rise as rescue teams searched through the rubble.
10) Lucca's top government official, Prefect Carmelo Aronica, told Italy's RAI state TV that at least 50 people were injured, 35 of whom were hospitalized with severe burns. The ANSA news agency reported that three children were pulled alive from the rubble of their collapsed home shortly before daybreak Tuesday.
11) About 1,000 people were evacuated from their homes as a precaution, town hall officials said. Tents were put up in the area around the town hall.
12) Videos uploaded on YouTube showed a huge plume of fire and smoke towering above Viareggio's low houses. Images from the scene showed an inferno raging in the night, consuming buildings and cars, while the sound of sirens and explosions pierced the air.
13) "It's an impressive scene, there are dozens and dozens of cars hit by the shock wave and collapsed houses," said firefighters spokesman Luca Cari.
14) The 14-car train carrying the liquefied gas was traveling from the northern city of La Spezia to Pisa.
15) The train's two engineers were only lightly injured and were questioned in the hospital, saying they felt an impact some 650 feet (200 meters) outside the station, shortly before the rear of the train flew off the tracks, Gargiulo said.
16) He told The Associated Press by telephone that the incident may have been caused by damage to the tracks or by a problem with the train's braking system.
Freight train derails in Italy, kills 13, burns 50
(APW_ENG_20090630.0368)
1) A freight train derailed in the middle of the night in northern Italy, setting off an explosion and a fire that killed at least 13 people and sent 50 others to the hospital, many with severe burns, officials said Tuesday.
2) The 14-car train was traveling from the northern city of La Spezia to Pisa when a rear car plowed into a residential neighborhood beside the train station in the Tuscan seaside town of Viareggio just before midnight Monday.
3) A train car filled with liquefied natural gas exploded, collapsing at least two buildings and setting fire to a vast area. Homes collapsed or burned, killing residents as they slept.
4) "We saw a ball of fire rising up to the sky," said witness Gianfranco Bini, who lives in a building overlooking the station. "We heard three big rumbles, like bombs. It looked like war had broken out."
5) Videos uploaded on YouTube showed a huge plume of fire and smoke towering above Viareggio's low houses. An inferno raged through the night, consuming buildings and cars, while the sound of sirens and explosions pierced the air.
6) The death toll stood at 13 by Tuesday morning, said Gennaro Tornatore, a spokesman for the firefighters. But he said the number of victims might rise as 300 firefighters and other rescue teams searched through the rubble.
7) The city of Lucca's top government official, Prefect Carmelo Aronica, told Italy's RAI state TV that at least 50 people were injured, with 35 hospitalized with severe burns. The ANSA news agency reported that three children were pulled alive from the rubble of their collapsed home shortly before daybreak Tuesday.
8) About 1,000 people were evacuated from their homes as a precaution, and tents were set up around the town hall.
9) As the firefighters worked to contain the blaze, teams specialized in dealing with nuclear, biological and chemical threats were being brought in to prevent the other gas tanks from exploding. Officials said the fire was contained after several hours, but a smell of burning hung in the air.
10) "There are dozens and dozens of cars hit by the shock wave and collapsed houses," said firefighters' spokesman Luca Cari.
11) Some of the victims, including a child, were killed in their homes, said Raffaele Gargiulo, a police spokesman for the nearby city of Lucca, which is in charge of the smaller town of Viareggio. Two drivers on the road alongside the tracks when the train derailed were also killed.
12) Others suffered severe burns and died at the hospital.
13) "The condition of the bodies is such that it will be very difficult to identify them," Gargiulo said.
14) The train's two engineers were only lightly injured. While being questioned in the hospital, they said they felt an impact some 650 feet (200 meters) outside the station, shortly before the rear of the train flew off the tracks, Gargiulo said.
15) He told The Associated Press by telephone that the derailing may have been caused by damage to the tracks or by a problem with the train's braking system.
Freight train derails in Italy, kills 12, burns 50
(APW_ENG_20090630.0455)
1) A train derailed and set off an explosion and fire in the middle of a small Italian town, killing at least 12 people -- many as they slept in their homes -- and injuring at least 50, officials said Tuesday.
2) The 14-car train was traveling from the northern city of La Spezia to Pisa when a rear car plowed into a residential neighborhood beside the train station in the Tuscan seaside town of Viareggio just before midnight Monday.
3) A train car filled with liquefied natural gas exploded, collapsing five buildings and setting fire to a vast area. Homes collapsed or burned, killing residents as they slept.
4) The exact death toll was unclear as hundreds of rescuers searched through the rubble for survivors.
5) Guido Bertolaso, the chief of the Civil Protection Department, told reporters at the scene that 12 people had been killed, the ANSA and Apcom news agencies said. He said four people were missing.
6) Gennaro Tornatore, a spokesman for the firefighters, said 15 people had died.
7) Many of the injured suffered severe burns.
8) "We saw a ball of fire rising up to the sky," said witness Gianfranco Bini, who lives in a building overlooking the station. "We heard three big rumbles, like bombs. It looked like war had broken out."
9) His son, Gianni Bini, said he saw a truck driver running away on fire.
10) "This truck was passing by ... when it was hit by the heat wave and I saw the driver ablaze, getting off and walking away," he said.
11) Videos uploaded on YouTube showed a huge plume of fire and smoke towering above Viareggio's low houses. An inferno raged through the night, consuming buildings and cars, while the sound of sirens and explosions pierced the air. TV images showed residents, their bodies blackened by the smoke, being carried away on stretchers.
12) Ten buildings were at least partially burned, as well as dozens of cars, firefighters said.
13) Officials said the death toll might change as 300 firefighters and other rescue teams searched through the rubble.
14) The city of Lucca's top government official, Prefect Carmelo Aronica, told Italy's RAI state TV that at least 50 people were injured, with 35 hospitalized with severe burns. The ANSA news agency reported that three children were pulled alive from the rubble of their collapsed home shortly before daybreak Tuesday.
15) About 1,000 people were evacuated from their homes as a precaution, said Viareggio Mayor Luca Lunardini. Tents were set up around the town hall for about 200 people.
16) As the firefighters worked to contain the blaze, teams specialized in dealing with nuclear, biological and chemical threats were being brought in to prevent the other gas tanks from exploding. Officials said the fire was contained after several hours, but a smell of burning hung in the air.
17) "There are dozens and dozens of cars hit by the shock wave and collapsed houses," said firefighters' spokesman Luca Cari.
18) Some of the victims, including a child, were killed in their homes, said Raffaele Gargiulo, a police spokesman for the nearby city of Lucca, which is in charge of the smaller town of Viareggio. Two drivers on the road alongside the tracks when the train derailed were also killed.
19) Others suffered severe burns and died at the hospital.
20) "The condition of the bodies is such that it will be very difficult to identify them," Gargiulo said.
21) The train's two engineers were only lightly injured. While being questioned in the hospital, they said they felt an impact some 650 feet (200 meters) outside the station, shortly before the rear of the train flew off the tracks, Gargiulo said.
22) He told The Associated Press by telephone that the derailing may have been caused by damage to the tracks or by a problem with the train's braking system.
Freight train derails in Italy, kills 12, burns 50
(APW_ENG_20090630.0541)
1) A freight train derailed and plowed into houses in a small Italian town, setting off an explosion and fire that killed at least 12 people -- many as they slept in their homes -- and injured at least 50, officials said Tuesday.
2) The 14-car train was traveling from the northern city of La Spezia to Pisa when a rear car derailed and crashed into a residential neighborhood beside the train station in the Tuscan seaside town of Viareggio just before midnight Monday.
3) A train car filled with liquefied natural gas exploded, collapsing five buildings and setting fire to a vast area. Homes crumbled or burned, killing residents as they slept.
4) The exact death toll was unclear as hundreds of rescuers searched through the rubble for survivors.
5) Guido Bertolaso, the chief of the Civil Protection Department, told reporters at the scene that 12 people had been killed, the ANSA and Apcom news agencies said. He said four people were missing.
6) Gennaro Tornatore, a spokesman for the firefighters, said 15 people had died, while an official with the hospital in Viareggio, Stefano Pasquinucci, said the death toll stood at 16.
7) Many of the injured suffered severe burns.
8) "We saw a ball of fire rising up to the sky," said witness Gianfranco Bini, who lives in a building overlooking the station. "We heard three big rumbles, like bombs. It looked like war had broken out."
9) His son, Gianni Bini, said he saw a truck driver running away on fire.
10) "This truck was passing by ... when it was hit by the heat wave and I saw the driver ablaze, getting off and walking away," he said.
11) Videos uploaded onto YouTube showed a huge plume of fire and smoke towering above Viareggio's low houses. An inferno raged through the night, consuming buildings and cars, while the sound of sirens and explosions pierced the air. TV images showed residents, their bodies blackened by the smoke, being carried away on stretchers.
12) Bertolaso called the accident one of Italy's worst railway tragedies. Premier Silvio Berlusconi, who was in Naples for a businessmen meeting, said he would go to Viareggio later Tuesday to take control of the situation.
13) It was the deadliest train accident since January 2005, when 17 people were killed in a head-on collision between a passenger train and a freight train. The collision occurred in thick fog on a single track line near Bologna in northern Italy, and led to calls for improved train safety.
14) In Monday's overnight derailment, 10 buildings and dozens of cars were at least partially burned, firefighters said.
15) Officials said the death toll might increase as 300 firefighters and other rescue teams searched through the rubble.
16) The city of Lucca's top government official, Prefect Carmelo Aronica, told Italy's RAI state TV that at least 50 people were injured, with 35 hospitalized with severe burns. The ANSA news agency reported that three children were pulled alive from the rubble of their collapsed home shortly before daybreak Tuesday.
17) About 1,000 people were evacuated from their homes as a precaution, said Viareggio Mayor Luca Lunardini. Tents were set up around the town hall for about 200 people.
18) As the firefighters worked to contain the blaze, teams specialized in dealing with nuclear, biological and chemical threats were being brought in to prevent the other gas tanks from exploding. Officials said the fire was contained after several hours, but a smell of burning hung in the air.
19) "There are dozens and dozens of cars hit by the shock wave and collapsed houses," said firefighters' spokesman Luca Cari.
20) Some of the victims, including a child, were killed in their homes, said Raffaele Gargiulo, a police spokesman for the nearby city of Lucca, which is in charge of the smaller town of Viareggio. Two drivers on the road alongside the tracks when the train derailed were also killed.
21) Others suffered severe burns and died at the hospital.
22) "The condition of the bodies is such that it will be very difficult to identify them," Gargiulo said.
23) A statement by Italy's state-run railways company said the first rail car was registered with the Polish company PKP, while the other 13 cars were registered with the Deutsche Bahn, the German railways. The cars were driven by a locomotive of the Italian railways Trenitalia.
24) The statement said the first car appeared to derail and explode, pulling another four cars with it. The cause was not immediately clear.
25) The train's two engineers were only lightly injured. While being questioned in the hospital, they said they felt an impact some 650 feet (200 meters) outside the station, shortly before the rear of the train flew off the tracks, Gargiulo said.
26) He told The Associated Press by telephone that the derailing may have been caused by damage to the tracks or by a problem with the train's braking system.
Freight train derails in Italy, kills 12, burns 50
(APW_ENG_20090630.0704)
1) A freight train carrying gas derailed and exploded in the midst of a small Italian town, setting off a fire that killed at least 12 people, many as they slept in their homes, and injured at least 50, officials said Tuesday.
2) The 14-car train was traveling from the northern city of La Spezia to Pisa when a car derailed while traveling through a residential neighborhood beside the train station in the Tuscan seaside town of Viareggio just before midnight Monday.
3) A train car filled with liquefied petroleum gas, or LPG, sprang a leak, causing an explosion that collapsed five buildings and set fire to a vast area. Homes crumbled or burned, killing residents as they slept.
4) The exact death toll was unclear as hundreds of rescuers searched through the rubble for survivors.
5) Guido Bertolaso, the chief of the Civil Protection Department, told reporters at the scene that 12 people had been killed, the ANSA and Apcom news agencies said. He said four people were missing.
6) Gennaro Tornatore, a spokesman for the firefighters, said 15 people had died, while an official with the hospital in Viareggio, Stefano Pasquinucci, said the death toll stood at 16.
7) Many of the injured suffered severe burns.
8) "We saw a ball of fire rising up to the sky," said witness Gianfranco Bini, who lives in a building overlooking the station. "We heard three big rumbles, like bombs. It looked like war had broken out."
9) His son, Gianni Bini, said he saw a truck driver running away on fire.
10) "This truck was passing by ... when it was hit by the heat wave and I saw the driver ablaze, getting off and walking away," he said.
11) Videos uploaded onto YouTube showed a huge plume of fire and smoke towering above Viareggio's low houses. An inferno raged through the night, consuming buildings and cars, while the sound of sirens and explosions pierced the air. TV images showed residents, their bodies blackened by the smoke, being carried away on stretchers.
12) Pope Benedict XVI expressed his "participation in the pain striking the whole town" and said in a telegram of condolences he was praying for the victims.
13) Bertolaso called the accident one of Italy's worst railway tragedies. Premier Silvio Berlusconi, who was in Naples for a businessmen meeting, said he would go to Viareggio later Tuesday to take control of the situation.
14) It was the deadliest train accident since January 2005, when 17 people were killed in a head-on collision between a passenger train and a freight train. The collision occurred in thick fog on a single track line near Bologna in northern Italy, and led to calls for improved train safety.
15) In Monday's overnight derailment, 10 buildings and dozens of cars were at least partially burned, firefighters said.
16) Officials said the death toll might increase as 300 firefighters and other rescue teams searched through the rubble.
17) The city of Lucca's top government official, Prefect Carmelo Aronica, told Italy's RAI state TV that at least 50 people were injured, with 35 hospitalized with severe burns. The ANSA news agency reported that three children were pulled alive from the rubble of their collapsed home shortly before daybreak Tuesday.
18) About 1,000 people were evacuated from their homes as a precaution, said Viareggio Mayor Luca Lunardini. Tents were set up around the town hall for about 200 people.
19) As the firefighters worked to contain the blaze, teams specialized in dealing with nuclear, biological and chemical threats were being brought in to prevent the other gas tanks from exploding. Officials said the fire was contained after several hours, but a smell of burning hung in the air.
20) Some of the victims, including a child, were killed in their homes, said Raffaele Gargiulo, a police spokesman for the nearby city of Lucca, which is in charge of Viareggio. Two drivers on the road alongside the tracks were also killed.
21) Others suffered severe burns and died at the hospital.
22) "The condition of the bodies is such that it will be very difficult to identify them," Gargiulo said.
23) Italy's state-run railways company said the first rail car was registered with the Polish company PKP, while the other 13 cars were registered with the Deutsche Bahn, the German railways. The cars were driven by a locomotive of the Italian railways Trenitalia.
24) The statement said the first car appeared to derail and explode, pulling another four cars with it. The cause was not immediately clear. However, a spokeswoman for Deutsche Bahn, speaking on condition of anonymity in line with company policy, said "there were none of our cars in the train."
25) GATX Rail Europe, which is based in Vienna, said it owns the rail cars. CFO Werner Mitteregger added he did not have any details on what caused the accident.
26) He said a company representative has been sent to Viareggio to gather information. He had no immediate comment on the state or age of the rail cars, saying they were still trying to identify them.
27) The train's two engineers were lightly injured. While being questioned in the hospital, they said they felt an impact some 650 feet (200 meters) outside the station, shortly before part of the train flew off the tracks, Gargiulo said.
28) He told The Associated Press by telephone that the derailing may have been caused by damage to the tracks or by a problem with the train's braking system.
29) EU Transport Commissioner Antonio Tajani called on EU countries to step up safety checks of Europe's rail transport sector, which is increasingly run by private operators.
30) "Now that we have liberalization we have to step up checks because previously there was national inspection systems, currently its a more wide ranging task and more difficult," Tajani said.
31) He said he would recommend more frequent checks than the once-in-six-year inspections currently carried out on rail cargo cars, adding that inspections should be based on how many kilometers the wagons run up.
Freight train derails in Italy, kills 12, burns 50
(APW_ENG_20090630.0705)
1) A freight train carrying gas derailed and exploded in the midst of a small Italian town, setting off a fire that killed at least 12 people, many as they slept in their homes, and injured at least 50, officials said Tuesday.
2) The 14-car train was traveling from the northern city of La Spezia to Pisa when a car derailed while traveling through a residential neighborhood beside the train station in the Tuscan seaside town of Viareggio just before midnight Monday.
3) A train car filled with liquefied petroleum gas, or LPG, sprang a leak, causing an explosion that collapsed five buildings and set fire to a vast area. Homes crumbled or burned, killing residents as they slept.
4) The exact death toll was unclear as hundreds of rescuers searched through the rubble for survivors.
5) Guido Bertolaso, the chief of the Civil Protection Department, told reporters at the scene that 12 people had been killed, the ANSA and Apcom news agencies said. He said four people were missing.
6) Gennaro Tornatore, a spokesman for the firefighters, said 15 people had died, while an official with the hospital in Viareggio, Stefano Pasquinucci, said the death toll stood at 16.
7) Many of the injured suffered severe burns.
8) "We saw a ball of fire rising up to the sky," said witness Gianfranco Bini, who lives in a building overlooking the station. "We heard three big rumbles, like bombs. It looked like war had broken out."
9) His son, Gianni Bini, said he saw a truck driver running away on fire.
10) "This truck was passing by ... when it was hit by the heat wave and I saw the driver ablaze, getting off and walking away," he said.
11) Videos uploaded onto YouTube showed a huge plume of fire and smoke towering above Viareggio's low houses. An inferno raged through the night, consuming buildings and cars, while the sound of sirens and explosions pierced the air. TV images showed residents, their bodies blackened by the smoke, being carried away on stretchers.
12) Pope Benedict XVI expressed his "participation in the pain striking the whole town" and said in a telegram of condolences he was praying for the victims.
13) Bertolaso called the accident one of Italy's worst railway tragedies. Premier Silvio Berlusconi, who was in Naples for a businessmen meeting, said he would go to Viareggio later Tuesday to take control of the situation.
14) It was the deadliest train accident since January 2005, when 17 people were killed in a head-on collision between a passenger train and a freight train. The collision occurred in thick fog on a single track line near Bologna in northern Italy, and led to calls for improved train safety.
15) In Monday's overnight derailment, 10 buildings and dozens of cars were at least partially burned, firefighters said.
16) Officials said the death toll might increase as 300 firefighters and other rescue teams searched through the rubble.
17) The city of Lucca's top government official, Prefect Carmelo Aronica, told Italy's RAI state TV that at least 50 people were injured, with 35 hospitalized with severe burns. The ANSA news agency reported that three children were pulled alive from the rubble of their collapsed home shortly before daybreak Tuesday.
18) About 1,000 people were evacuated from their homes as a precaution, said Viareggio Mayor Luca Lunardini. Tents were set up around the town hall for about 200 people.
19) As the firefighters worked to contain the blaze, teams specialized in dealing with nuclear, biological and chemical threats were being brought in to prevent the other gas tanks from exploding. Officials said the fire was contained after several hours, but a smell of burning hung in the air.
20) Some of the victims, including a child, were killed in their homes, said Raffaele Gargiulo, a police spokesman for the nearby city of Lucca, which is in charge of Viareggio. Two drivers on the road alongside the tracks were also killed.
21) Others suffered severe burns and died at the hospital.
22) "The condition of the bodies is such that it will be very difficult to identify them," Gargiulo said.
23) Italy's state-run railways company said the first rail car was registered with the Polish company PKP, while the other 13 cars were registered with the Deutsche Bahn, the German railways. The cars were driven by a locomotive of the Italian railways Trenitalia.
24) The statement said the first car appeared to derail and explode, pulling another four cars with it. The cause was not immediately clear. However, a spokeswoman for Deutsche Bahn, speaking on condition of anonymity in line with company policy, said "there were none of our cars in the train."
25) GATX Rail Europe, which is based in Vienna, said it owns the rail cars. CFO Werner Mitteregger added he did not have any details on what caused the accident.
26) He said a company representative has been sent to Viareggio to gather information. He had no immediate comment on the state or age of the rail cars, saying they were still trying to identify them.
27) The train's two engineers were lightly injured. While being questioned in the hospital, they said they felt an impact some 650 feet (200 meters) outside the station, shortly before part of the train flew off the tracks, Gargiulo said.
28) He told The Associated Press by telephone that the derailing may have been caused by damage to the tracks or by a problem with the train's braking system.
29) EU Transport Commissioner Antonio Tajani called on EU countries to step up safety checks of Europe's rail transport sector, which is increasingly run by private operators.
30) "Now that we have liberalization we have to step up checks because previously there was national inspection systems, currently its a more wide ranging task and more difficult," Tajani said.
31) He said he would recommend more frequent checks than the once-in-six-year inspections currently carried out on rail cargo cars, adding that inspections should be based on how many kilometers the wagons run up.
Freight train derails in Italy, kills 12, burns 50
(APW_ENG_20090630.0869)
1) A freight train carrying gas derailed and exploded in the midst of a small Tuscan town, setting off a fire that killed at least 12 people -- many as they slept in their homes -- and injured at least 50, Italian officials said Tuesday.
2) The 14-car train was traveling from the northern city of La Spezia to Pisa when a car derailed while traveling through a residential neighborhood beside the train station in the Tuscan seaside town of Viareggio just before midnight Monday.
3) A train car filled with liquefied petroleum gas, or LPG, sprang a leak, causing an explosion that collapsed five buildings and set fire to a vast area. Homes crumbled or burned, killing residents as they slept.
4) The exact death toll was unclear as hundreds of rescuers searched through the rubble for survivors.
5) Guido Bertolaso, the chief of the Civil Protection Department, told reporters at the scene that 12 people had been killed, the ANSA and Apcom news agencies said. He said four people were missing.
6) Gennaro Tornatore, a spokesman for the firefighters, said 15 people had died, while an official with the hospital in Viareggio, Stefano Pasquinucci, said the death toll stood at 16.
7) Many of the injured suffered severe burns.
8) "We saw a ball of fire rising up to the sky," said witness Gianfranco Bini, who lives in a building overlooking the station. "We heard three big rumbles, like bombs. It looked like war had broken out."
9) His son, Gianni Bini, said he saw a truck driver running away on fire.
10) "This truck was passing by ... when it was hit by the heat wave and I saw the driver ablaze, getting off and walking away," he said.
11) Videos uploaded onto YouTube showed a huge plume of fire and smoke towering above Viareggio's low houses. An inferno raged through the night, consuming buildings and cars, while the sound of sirens and explosions pierced the air. TV images showed residents, their bodies blackened by the smoke, being carried away on stretchers.
12) Pope Benedict XVI expressed his "participation in the pain striking the whole town" and said in a telegram of condolences he was praying for the victims.
13) Bertolaso called the accident one of Italy's worst railway tragedies. Premier Silvio Berlusconi, who was in Naples for a businessmen meeting, said he would go to Viareggio later Tuesday to take control of the situation.
14) It was the deadliest train accident since January 2005, when 17 people were killed in a head-on collision between a passenger train and a freight train. The collision occurred in thick fog on a single track line near Bologna in northern Italy, and led to calls for improved train safety.
15) In Monday's overnight derailment, 10 buildings and dozens of cars were at least partially burned, firefighters said.
16) Officials said the death toll might increase as 300 firefighters and other rescue teams searched through the rubble.
17) The city of Lucca's top government official, Prefect Carmelo Aronica, told Italy's RAI state TV that at least 50 people were injured, with 35 hospitalized with severe burns. The ANSA news agency reported that three children were pulled alive from the rubble of their collapsed home shortly before daybreak Tuesday.
18) About 1,000 people were evacuated from their homes as a precaution, said Viareggio Mayor Luca Lunardini. Tents were set up around the town hall for about 200 people.
19) As the firefighters worked to contain the blaze, teams specialized in dealing with nuclear, biological and chemical threats were being brought in to prevent the other gas tanks from exploding. Officials said the fire was contained after several hours, but a smell of burning hung in the air.
20) Some of the victims, including a child, were killed in their homes, said Raffaele Gargiulo, a police spokesman for the nearby city of Lucca, which is in charge of Viareggio. Two drivers on the road alongside the tracks were also killed.
21) Others suffered severe burns and died at the hospital.
22) "The condition of the bodies is such that it will be very difficult to identify them," Gargiulo said.
23) Italy's state-run railways company said the first rail car was registered with the Polish company PKP, while the other 13 cars were registered with the Deutsche Bahn, the German railways. The cars were driven by a locomotive of the Italian railways Trenitalia.
24) The statement said the first car appeared to derail and explode, pulling another four cars with it. The cause was not immediately clear. However, a spokeswoman for Deutsche Bahn, speaking on condition of anonymity in line with company policy, said "there were none of our cars in the train."
25) GATX Rail Europe, which is based in Vienna, said it owns the rail cars. CFO Werner Mitteregger added he did not have any details on what caused the accident.
26) He said a company representative has been sent to Viareggio to gather information. He had no immediate comment on the state or age of the rail cars, saying they were still trying to identify them.
27) The train's two engineers were lightly injured. While being questioned in the hospital, they said they felt an impact some 650 feet (200 meters) outside the station, shortly before part of the train flew off the tracks, Gargiulo said.
28) He told The Associated Press by telephone that the derailing may have been caused by damage to the tracks or by a problem with the train's braking system.
29) EU Transport Commissioner Antonio Tajani called on EU countries to step up safety checks of Europe's rail transport sector, which is increasingly run by private operators.
30) "Now that we have liberalization we have to step up checks because previously there was national inspection systems, currently its a more wide ranging task and more difficult," Tajani said.
31) He said he would recommend more frequent checks than the once-in-six-year inspections currently carried out on rail cargo cars, adding that inspections should be based on how many kilometers the wagons run up.
Freight train derails in Italy, kills 12, burns 50
(APW_ENG_20090630.0870)
1) A freight train carrying gas derailed and exploded in the midst of a small Tuscan town, setting off a fire that killed at least 12 people -- many as they slept in their homes -- and injured at least 50, Italian officials said Tuesday.
2) The 14-car train was traveling from the northern city of La Spezia to Pisa when a car derailed while traveling through a residential neighborhood beside the train station in the Tuscan seaside town of Viareggio just before midnight Monday.
3) A train car filled with liquefied petroleum gas, or LPG, sprang a leak, causing an explosion that collapsed five buildings and set fire to a vast area. Homes crumbled or burned, killing residents as they slept.
4) The exact death toll was unclear as hundreds of rescuers searched through the rubble for survivors.
5) Guido Bertolaso, the chief of the Civil Protection Department, told reporters at the scene that 12 people had been killed, the ANSA and Apcom news agencies said. He said four people were missing.
6) Gennaro Tornatore, a spokesman for the firefighters, said 15 people had died, while an official with the hospital in Viareggio, Stefano Pasquinucci, said the death toll stood at 16.
7) Many of the injured suffered severe burns.
8) "We saw a ball of fire rising up to the sky," said witness Gianfranco Bini, who lives in a building overlooking the station. "We heard three big rumbles, like bombs. It looked like war had broken out."
9) His son, Gianni Bini, said he saw a truck driver running away on fire.
10) "This truck was passing by ... when it was hit by the heat wave and I saw the driver ablaze, getting off and walking away," he said.
11) Videos uploaded onto YouTube showed a huge plume of fire and smoke towering above Viareggio's low houses. An inferno raged through the night, consuming buildings and cars, while the sound of sirens and explosions pierced the air. TV images showed residents, their bodies blackened by the smoke, being carried away on stretchers.
12) Pope Benedict XVI expressed his "participation in the pain striking the whole town" and said in a telegram of condolences he was praying for the victims.
13) Bertolaso called the accident one of Italy's worst railway tragedies. Premier Silvio Berlusconi, who was in Naples for a businessmen meeting, said he would go to Viareggio later Tuesday to take control of the situation.
14) It was the deadliest train accident since January 2005, when 17 people were killed in a head-on collision between a passenger train and a freight train. The collision occurred in thick fog on a single track line near Bologna in northern Italy, and led to calls for improved train safety.
15) In Monday's overnight derailment, 10 buildings and dozens of cars were at least partially burned, firefighters said.
16) Officials said the death toll might increase as 300 firefighters and other rescue teams searched through the rubble.
17) The city of Lucca's top government official, Prefect Carmelo Aronica, told Italy's RAI state TV that at least 50 people were injured, with 35 hospitalized with severe burns. The ANSA news agency reported that three children were pulled alive from the rubble of their collapsed home shortly before daybreak Tuesday.
18) About 1,000 people were evacuated from their homes as a precaution, said Viareggio Mayor Luca Lunardini. Tents were set up around the town hall for about 200 people.
19) As the firefighters worked to contain the blaze, teams specialized in dealing with nuclear, biological and chemical threats were being brought in to prevent the other gas tanks from exploding. Officials said the fire was contained after several hours, but a smell of burning hung in the air.
20) Some of the victims, including a child, were killed in their homes, said Raffaele Gargiulo, a police spokesman for the nearby city of Lucca, which is in charge of Viareggio. Two drivers on the road alongside the tracks were also killed.
21) Others suffered severe burns and died at the hospital.
22) "The condition of the bodies is such that it will be very difficult to identify them," Gargiulo said.
23) Italy's state-run railways company said the first rail car was registered with the Polish company PKP, while the other 13 cars were registered with the Deutsche Bahn, the German railways. The cars were driven by a locomotive of the Italian railways Trenitalia.
24) The statement said the first car appeared to derail and explode, pulling another four cars with it. The cause was not immediately clear. However, a spokeswoman for Deutsche Bahn, speaking on condition of anonymity in line with company policy, said "there were none of our cars in the train."
25) GATX Rail Europe, which is based in Vienna, said it owns the rail cars. CFO Werner Mitteregger added he did not have any details on what caused the accident.
26) He said a company representative has been sent to Viareggio to gather information. He had no immediate comment on the state or age of the rail cars, saying they were still trying to identify them.
27) The train's two engineers were lightly injured. While being questioned in the hospital, they said they felt an impact some 650 feet (200 meters) outside the station, shortly before part of the train flew off the tracks, Gargiulo said.
28) He told The Associated Press by telephone that the derailing may have been caused by damage to the tracks or by a problem with the train's braking system.
29) EU Transport Commissioner Antonio Tajani called on EU countries to step up safety checks of Europe's rail transport sector, which is increasingly run by private operators.
30) "Now that we have liberalization we have to step up checks because previously there was national inspection systems, currently its a more wide ranging task and more difficult," Tajani said.
31) He said he would recommend more frequent checks than the once-in-six-year inspections currently carried out on rail cargo cars, adding that inspections should be based on how many kilometers the wagons run up.
Gas train derails in Italy, kills 13, burns 50
(APW_ENG_20090630.0936)
1) Elia Quiroz was about to go to bed in his home near the railroad station in this Tuscan seaside town when the train rumbled by. His kitchen table started shaking.
2) "Then I heard an explosion and I went outside," the 32-year-old Italian recalled. "I saw flames as high as 30, 40 meters, and I ran."
3) A gas-filled train derailed while traveling through a downtown neighborhood around midnight Monday, catching residents in their sleep, and setting off a massive explosion that killed at least 13 people and injured dozens of others, most with severe burns.
4) The death toll was still unclear Tuesday: The Civil Protection said 13 people were killed and four were missing, while an official with the hospital in Viareggio, Stefano Pasquinucci, said there were 16 dead. Some 35 of the 50 injured had suffered severe burns.
5) As rescuers searched through the rubble for survivors, unions and consumer groups denounced what they said is the poor safety record and aging infrastructure of Italy's rail system and questioned sending highly explosive cargo through an inhabited area.
6) The 14-car train was traveling from the northern city of La Spezia to Pisa when part of the convoy derailed as it passed Viareggio's station.
7) A car filled with liquefied petroleum gas, or LPG, sprung a leak and all it took then was a spark to cause an explosion that collapsed five buildings and set fire to a vast area. Homes crumbled or burned, killing residents as they slept.
8) "We saw a ball of fire rising up to the sky," said witness Gianfranco Bini, who lives in a building overlooking the station. "We heard three big rumbles, like bombs. It looked like war had broken out."
9) His son, Gianni Bini, said he saw a truck driver running away on fire.
10) "This truck was passing by ... when it was hit by the heat wave and I saw the driver ablaze, getting off and walking away" in a daze, he said.
11) Videos uploaded onto YouTube showed a huge plume of fire and smoke towering above Viareggio's low houses. An inferno raged through the night, consuming buildings and cars, while the sound of sirens and explosions pierced the air. TV images showed residents, their bodies blackened by the smoke, being carried away on stretchers.
12) Pope Benedict XVI expressed his "participation in the pain striking the whole town" and said in a telegram of condolences he was praying for the victims.
13) Silvio Berlusconi, Italy's center-right premier, traveled to Viareggio to take charge of the situation and was greeted with boos and cries of "go home" as he arrived at the town's municipality. Tuscany is usually a left-leaning region of Italy.
14) About 100 people had lost their homes and a total of 1,000 were evacuated as a precaution, said Viareggio Mayor Luca Lunardini.
15) As some 300 firefighters extinguished the blaze, teams specialized in dealing with nuclear, biological and chemical threats were brought in to prevent the other gas tanks from exploding.
16) Some of the victims, including a child, were killed at home, said Raffaele Gargiulo, a police spokesman for the nearby city of Lucca, which is in charge of Viareggio. Two drivers on the road alongside the tracks were also killed.
17) Others suffered severe burns and died at the hospital.
18) "The condition of the bodies is such that it will be very difficult to identify them," Gargiulo said.
19) It was Italy's deadliest train accident since January 2005, when 17 people were killed in a head-on collision between a passenger train and a freight train. The collision occurred in thick fog on a single track line near Bologna in northern Italy, and led to calls for improved train safety.
20) Berlusconi said at a news conference that Monday's tragedy was caused by the breakage of a wheel axis of one the gas cars.
21) The train's two engineers were lightly injured. While being questioned in the hospital, they said they felt an impact some 650 feet (200 meters) outside the station, shortly before part of the train flew off the tracks, Gargiulo said.
22) The ADUC consumer group said the train should never have traveled on that line, and blamed Italy's old railroad lines and their limited number for the disaster.
23) "How is it possible that such a dangerous cargo could travel through such an important station and an inhabited area?" the groups said in a statement.
24) The union of Italy's rail engineers called for greater checks on train cars that are registered abroad, like the ones involved in the crash.
25) Italy's state-run railways company said in a statement the first car appeared to derail and explode, pulling another four cars with it. The cars came from Poland and Germany and were driven by a locomotive of the Italian railways Trenitalia.
26) GATX Rail Europe, which is based in Vienna, said it owns the rail cars. CFO Werner Mitteregger added he did not have any details on what caused the accident.
27) He said a company representative has been sent to Viareggio to gather information. He had no immediate comment on the state or age of the rail cars, saying they were still trying to identify them.
28) EU Transport Commissioner Antonio Tajani called on EU countries to step up safety checks of Europe's rail transport sector, which is increasingly run by private operators.
29) Italy's Interior Minister, Roberto Maroni said it was too early to draw conclusions on the crash.
30) "Once the causes will be clear we will act at an Italian or European level to ensure such accidents don't happen again," he said.
Gas train derails in Italy, kills 14, burns 50
(APW_ENG_20090630.1180)
1) Elia Quiroz was about to go to bed in his home near the railroad station in this Tuscan seaside town when the train rumbled by. His kitchen table started shaking.
2) "Then I heard an explosion and I went outside," the 32-year-old Italian recalled. "I saw flames as high as 30, 40 meters, and I ran."
3) A gas-filled train derailed while traveling through a downtown neighborhood around midnight Monday, catching residents in their sleep, and setting off a massive explosion that killed at least 14 people and injured dozens of others, most with severe burns.
4) Death toll figures seesawed on Tuesday, but the Civil Protection eventually put the official count at 14 dead and three missing after the body of a woman was found in her crumbled home. Some 35 of the 50 injured had suffered severe burns.
5) As rescuers searched through the rubble for survivors, unions and consumer groups denounced what they said is the poor safety record and aging infrastructure of Italy's rail system and questioned sending highly explosive cargo through an inhabited area.
6) The 14-car train was traveling from the northern city of La Spezia to Pisa when part of the convoy derailed as it passed Viareggio's station.
7) A car filled with liquefied petroleum gas, or LPG, sprung a leak and all it took then was a spark to cause an explosion that collapsed five buildings and set fire to a vast area. Homes crumbled or burned, killing residents as they slept.
8) "We saw a ball of fire rising up to the sky," said witness Gianfranco Bini, who lives in a building overlooking the station. "We heard three big rumbles, like bombs. It looked like war had broken out."
9) His son, Gianni Bini, said he saw a truck driver running away on fire.
10) "This truck was passing by ... when it was hit by the heat wave and I saw the driver ablaze, getting off and walking away" in a daze, he said.
11) Videos uploaded onto YouTube showed a huge plume of fire and smoke towering above Viareggio's low houses. An inferno raged through the night, consuming buildings and cars, while the sound of sirens and explosions pierced the air. TV images showed residents, their bodies blackened by the smoke, being carried away on stretchers.
12) Pope Benedict XVI expressed his "participation in the pain striking the whole town" and said in a telegram of condolences he was praying for the victims.
13) Silvio Berlusconi, Italy's center-right premier, traveled to Viareggio to take charge of the situation and was greeted with boos and cries of "go home" as he arrived at the town's municipality. Tuscany is usually a left-leaning region of Italy.
14) About 100 people had lost their homes and a total of 1,000 were evacuated as a precaution, said Viareggio Mayor Luca Lunardini.
15) As some 300 firefighters extinguished the blaze, teams specialized in dealing with nuclear, biological and chemical threats were brought in to prevent the other gas tanks from exploding.
16) Some of the victims, including a child, were killed at home, said Raffaele Gargiulo, a police spokesman for the nearby city of Lucca, which is in charge of Viareggio. Two drivers on the road alongside the tracks were also killed.
17) Others suffered severe burns and died at the hospital.
18) "The condition of the bodies is such that it will be very difficult to identify them," Gargiulo said.
19) It was Italy's deadliest train accident since January 2005, when 17 people were killed in a head-on collision between a passenger train and a freight train. The collision occurred in thick fog on a single track line near Bologna in northern Italy, and led to calls for improved train safety.
20) Berlusconi said at a news conference that Monday's tragedy was caused by the breakage of a wheel axis of one the gas cars.
21) The train's two engineers were lightly injured. While being questioned in the hospital, they said they felt an impact some 650 feet (200 meters) outside the station, shortly before part of the train flew off the tracks, Gargiulo said.
22) The ADUC consumer group said the train should never have traveled on that line, and blamed Italy's old railroad lines and their limited number for the disaster.
23) "How is it possible that such a dangerous cargo could travel through such an important station and an inhabited area?" the groups said in a statement.
24) The union of Italy's rail engineers called for greater checks on train cars that are registered abroad, like the ones involved in the crash.
25) Italy's state-run railways company said in a statement the first car appeared to derail and explode, pulling another four cars with it. The cars came from Poland and Germany and were driven by a locomotive of the Italian railways Trenitalia.
26) GATX Rail Europe, which is based in Vienna, said it owns the rail cars. CFO Werner Mitteregger added he did not have any details on what caused the accident.
27) He said a company representative has been sent to Viareggio to gather information. He had no immediate comment on the state or age of the rail cars, saying they were still trying to identify them.
28) EU Transport Commissioner Antonio Tajani called on EU countries to step up safety checks of Europe's rail transport sector, which is increasingly run by private operators.
29) Italy's Interior Minister, Roberto Maroni said it was too early to draw conclusions on the crash.
30) "Once the causes will be clear we will act at an Italian or European level to ensure such accidents don't happen again," he said.
Gas train derails in Italy, kills 14, burns 50
(APW_ENG_20090630.1187)
1) Elia Quiroz was about to go to bed in his home near the railroad station in this Tuscan seaside town when the train rumbled by. His kitchen table started shaking.
2) "Then I heard an explosion and I went outside," the 32-year-old Italian recalled. "I saw flames as high as 30, 40 meters, and I ran."
3) A gas-filled train derailed while traveling through a downtown neighborhood around midnight Monday, catching residents in their sleep, and setting off a massive explosion that killed at least 14 people and injured dozens of others, most with severe burns.
4) Death toll figures seesawed on Tuesday, but the Civil Protection eventualyput te ffcil out t 4 ea ad hre isin ftr hebody f a woman was found in her crumbled home. Some 35 of the 50 injured had suffered severe burns.
5) As rescuers searched through the rubble for survivors, unions and consumer groups denounced what they said is the poor safety record and aging infrastructure of Italy's rail system and questioned sending highly explosive cargo through an inhabited area.
6) The 14-car train was traveling from the northern city of La Spezia to Pisa when part of the convoy derailed as it passed Viareggio's station.
7) A car filled with liquefied petroleum gas, or LPG, sprung a leak and all it took then was a spark to cause an explosion that collapsed five buildings and set fire to a vast area. Homes crumbled or burned, killing residents as they slept.
8) "We saw a ball of fire rising up to the sky," said witness Gianfranco Bini, who lives in a building overlooking the station. "We heard three big rumbles, like bombs. It looked like war had broken out."
9) His son, Gianni Bini, said he saw a truck driver running away on fire.
10) "This truck was passing by ... when it was hit by the heat wave and I saw the driver ablaze, getting off and walking away" in a daze, he said.
11) Videos uploaded onto YouTube showed a huge plume of fire and smoke towering above Viareggio's low houses. An inferno raged through the night, consuming buildings and cars, while the sound of sirens and explosions pierced the air. TV images showed residents, their bodies blackened by the smoke, being carried away on stretchers.
12) Pope Benedict XVI expressed his "participation inth pin sriin te hoe ow"an sidina elgrm f onolencs he was praying for the victims.
13) Silvio Berlusconi, Italy's center-right premier, traveled to Viareggio to take charge of the situation and was greeted with boos and cries of "go home" as he arrived at the town's municipality. Tuscany is usually a left-leaning region of Italy.
14) About 100 people had lost their homes and a total of 1,000 were evacuated as a precaution, said Viareggio Mayor Luca Lunardini.
15) As some 300 firefighters extinguished the blaze, teams specialized in dealing with nuclear, biological and chemical threats were brought in to prevent the other gas tanks from exploding.
16) Some of the victims, including a child, were killed at home, said Raffaele Gargiulo, a police spokesman for the nearby city of Lucca, which is in charge of Viareggio. Two drivers on the road alongside the tracks were also killed.
17) Others suffered severe burns and died at the hospital.
18) "The condition of the bodies is such that it will be very difficult to identify them," Gargiulo said.
19) It was Italy's deadliest train accident since January 2005, when 17 people were killed in a head-on collision between a passenger train and a freight train. The collision occurred in thick fog on a single track line near Bologna in northern Italy, and led to calls for improved train safety.
20) Berlusconi said at a news conference that Monday's tragedy was caused by the breakage of a wheel axis of one the gas cars.
21) The train's two engineers were lightly injured. While being questioned in the hospital, they said they felt an impact some 650 fee (00meer) utid te taio, hotl bfoe ar o te trin flew off the tracks, Gargiulo said.
22) The ADUC consumer group said the train should never have traveled on that line, and blamed Italy's old railroad lines and their limited number for the disaster.
23) "How is it possible that such a dangerous cargo could travel through such an important station and an inhabited area?" the groups said in a statement.
24) The union of Italy's rail engineers called for greater checks on train cars that are registered abroad, like the ones involved in the crash.
25) Italy's state-run railways company said in a statement the first car appeared to derail and explode, pulling another four cars with it. The cars came from Poland and Germany and were driven by a locomotive of the Italian railways Trenitalia.
26) GATX Rail Europe, which is based in Vienna, said it owns the rail cars. CFO Werner Mitteregger added he did not have any details on what caused the accident.
27) He said a company representative has been sent to Viareggio to gather information. He had no immediate comment on the state or age of the rail cars, saying they were still trying to identify them.
28) EU Transport Commissioner Antonio Tajani called on EU countries to step up safety checks of Europe's rail transport sector, which is increasingly run by private operators.
29) Italy's Interior Minister, Roberto Maroni said it was too early to draw conclusions on the crash.
30) "Once the causes will be clear we will act at an Italian or European level to ensure such accidents don't happen again," he said.
2009-07-01
Gas train derails in Italy, kills 14, burns 50
(APW_ENG_20090701.0030)
1) Elia Quiroz was about to go to bed in his home near the railroad station in this Tuscan seaside town when the train rumbled by. His kitchen table started shaking.
2) "Then I heard an explosion and I went outside," the 32-year-old Italian recalled. "I saw flames as high as 30, 40 meters, and I ran."
3) A gas-filled train derailed while traveling through a downtown neighborhood around midnight Monday, catching residents in their sleep, and setting off a massive explosion that killed at least 14 people and injured dozens of others, most with severe burns.
4) Death toll figures seesawed on Tuesday, but the Civil Protection Department eventually put the official count at 14 dead and three missing after the body of a woman was found in her crumbled home. Some 35 of the 50 injured suffered severe burns.
5) As rescuers searched through the rubble for survivors, unions and consumer groups denounced what they said is the poor safety record and aging infrastructure of Italy's rail system and questioned sending highly explosive cargo through an inhabited area.
6) The 14-car train was traveling from the northern city of La Spezia to Pisa when part of the convoy derailed as it passed Viareggio's station.
7) A car filled with liquefied petroleum gas, or LPG, sprung a leak and all it took then was a spark to cause an explosion that collapsed five buildings and set fire to a vast area. Homes crumbled or burned, killing residents as they slept.
8) "We saw a ball of fire rising up to the sky," said witness Gianfranco Bini, who lives in a building overlooking the station. "We heard three big rumbles, like bombs. It looked like war had broken out."
9) His son, Gianni Bini, said he saw a truck driver running away on fire.
10) "This truck was passing by ... when it was hit by the heat wave and I saw the driver ablaze, getting off and walking away" in a daze, he said.
11) Videos uploaded onto YouTube showed a huge plume of fire and smoke towering above Viareggio's low houses. An inferno raged through the night, consuming buildings and cars, while the sound of sirens and explosions pierced the air. TV images showed residents, their bodies blackened by the smoke, being carried away on stretchers.
12) Pope Benedict XVI expressed his "participation in the pain striking the whole town" and said in a telegram of condolences he was praying for the victims.
13) Silvio Berlusconi, Italy's center-right premier, traveled to Viareggio to take charge of the situation and was greeted with boos and cries of "go home" as he arrived at the town's municipality. Tuscany is usually a left-leaning region of Italy.
14) About 100 people had lost their homes and a total of 1,000 were evacuated as a precaution, said Viareggio Mayor Luca Lunardini.
15) As some 300 firefighters extinguished the blaze, teams specialized in dealing with nuclear, biological and chemical threats were brought in to prevent the other gas tanks from exploding.
16) Some of the victims, including a child, were killed at home, said Raffaele Gargiulo, a police spokesman for the nearby city of Lucca, which is in charge of Viareggio. Two drivers on the road alongside the tracks were also killed.
17) Others suffered severe burns and died at the hospital.
18) "The condition of the bodies is such that it will be very difficult to identify them," Gargiulo said.
19) It was Italy's deadliest train accident since January 2005, when 17 people were killed in a head-on collision between a passenger train and a freight train. The collision occurred in thick fog on a single track line near Bologna in northern Italy, and led to calls for improved train safety.
20) Berlusconi said at a news conference that Monday's tragedy was caused by the breakage of a wheel axis of one of the gas cars.
21) The train's two engineers were lightly injured. While being questioned in the hospital, they said they felt an impact some 650 feet (200 meters) outside the station, shortly before part of the train flew off the tracks, Gargiulo said.
22) The ADUC consumer group said the train should never have traveled on that line, and blamed Italy's old railroad lines and their limited number for the disaster.
23) "How is it possible that such a dangerous cargo could travel through such an important station and an inhabited area?" the groups said in a statement.
24) The union of Italy's rail engineers called for greater checks on train cars that are registered abroad, like the ones involved in the crash.
25) Italy's state-run railways company said in a statement the first car appeared to derail and explode, pulling another four cars with it. The cars came from Poland and Germany and were driven by a locomotive of the Italian railways Trenitalia.
26) GATX Rail Europe, which is based in Vienna, said it owns the rail cars. CFO Werner Mitteregger added he did not have any details on what caused the accident.
27) He said a company representative has been sent to Viareggio to gather information. He had no immediate comment on the state or age of the rail cars, saying they were still trying to identify them.
28) EU Transport Commissioner Antonio Tajani called on EU countries to step up safety checks of Europe's rail transport sector, which is increasingly run by private operators.
29) Italy's Interior Minister, Roberto Maroni said it was too early to draw conclusions on the crash.
30) "Once the causes will be clear we will act at an Italian or European level to ensure such accidents don't happen again," he said.
Gas train derails in Italy, kills 14, burns 50
(APW_ENG_20090701.0032)
1) Elia Quiroz was about to go to bed in his home nea te airod taio i tisTuca sasdeton he hetrainrubled by. His kitchen table started shaking.
2) "Then I heard an explosion and I went outside," the 32-year-old Italian recalled. "I saw flames as high as 30, 40 meters, and I ran."
3) A gas-filled train derailed while traveling through a downtown neighborhood around midnight Monday, catching residents in their sleep, and setting off a massive explosion that killed at least 14 people and injured dozens of others, most with severe burns.
4) Death toll figures seesawed on Tuesday, but the Civil Protection Department eventually put the official count at 14 dead and three missing after the body of a woman was found in her crumbled home. Some 35 of the 50 injured suffered severe burns.
5) As rescuers searched through the rubble for survivors, unions and consumer groups denounced what they said is the poor safety record and aging infrastructure of Italy's rail system and questioned sending highly explosive cargo through an inhabited area.
6) The 14-car train was traveling from the northern city of La Spezia to Pisa when part of the convoy derailed as it passed Viareggio's station.
7) A car filled with liquefied petroleum gas, or LPG, sprung a leak and all it took then was a spark to cause an explosion that collapsed five buildings and set fire to a vast area. Homes crumbled or burned, killing residents as they slept.
8) "We saw a ball of fire rising up to the sky," said witness Gianfranco Bini, who lives in a building overlooking the station. "We heard three big rumbles, like bombs. It looked like war had broken out."
9) His son Gani in, ai h sw tuc divr unin aayon fre
10) "This truck was passing by ... when it was hit by the heat wave and I saw the driver ablaze, getting off and walking away" in a daze, he said.
11) Videos uploaded onto YouTube showed a huge plume of fire and smoke towering above Viareggio's low houses. An inferno raged through the night, consuming buildings and cars, while the sound of sirens and explosions pierced the air. TV images showed residents, their bodies blackened by the smoke, being carried away on stretchers.
12) Pope Benedict XVI expressed his "participation in the pain striking the whole town" and said in a telegram of condolences he was praying for the victims.
13) Silvio Berlusconi, Italy's center-right premier, traveled to Viareggio to take charge of the situation and was greeted with boos and cries of "go home" as he arrived at the town's municipality. Tuscany is usually a left-leaning region of Italy.
14) About 100 people had lost their homes and a total of 1,000 were evacuated as a precaution, said Viareggio Mayor Luca Lunardini.
15) As some 300 firefighters extinguished the blaze, teams specialized in dealing with nuclear, biological and chemical threats were brought in to prevent the other gas tanks from exploding.
16) Some of the victims, including a child, were killed at home, said Raffaele Gargiulo, a police spokesman for the nearby city of Lucca, which is in charge of Viareggio. Two drivers on the road alongside the tracks were also killed.
17) Others suffered severe burns and died at the hospital.
18) "The condition of the bodies is such that it will b vry dffcut o detiy he,' Grgul sid
19) Itwa Ialy'sdeadliest train accident since January 2005, when 17 people were killed in a head-on collision between a passenger train and a freight train. The collision occurred in thick fog on a single track line near Bologna in northern Italy, and led to calls for improved train safety.
20) Berlusconi said at a news conference that Monday's tragedy was caused by the breakage of a wheel axis of one of the gas cars.
21) The train's two engineers were lightly injured. While being questioned in the hospital, they said they felt an impact some 650 feet (200 meters) outside the station, shortly before part of the train flew off the tracks, Gargiulo said.
22) The ADUC consumer group said the train should never have traveled on that line, and blamed Italy's old railroad lines and their limited number for the disaster.
23) "How is it possible that such a dangerous cargo could travel through such an important station and an inhabited area?" the groups said in a statement.
24) The union of Italy's rail engineers called for greater checks on train cars that are registered abroad, like the ones involved in the crash.
25) Italy's state-run railways company said in a statement the first car appeared to derail and explode, pulling another four cars with it. The cars came from Poland and Germany and were driven by a locomotive of the Italian railways Trenitalia.
26) GATX Rail Europe, which is based in Vienna, said it owns the rail cars. CFO Werner Mitteregger added he did not have any details on what caused the accident.
27) He said a company representative has been en t Varggo o gahe ifomaio. e adnoimedat cmmenton the state or age of the rail cars, saying they were still trying to identify them.
28) EU Transport Commissioner Antonio Tajani called on EU countries to step up safety checks of Europe's rail transport sector, which is increasingly run by private operators.
29) Italy's Interior Minister, Roberto Maroni said it was too early to draw conclusions on the crash.
30) "Once the causes will be clear we will act at an Italian or European level to ensure such accidents don't happen again," he said.
Report: Italian train derailment death toll at 16
(APW_ENG_20090701.0372)
1) News reports say two children have died after suffering severe burns in an explosion that followed a train derailment in northern Italy, raising the death toll to 16.
2) The ANSA news agency and Sky Italia said Wednesday that a 3-year old girl died overnight in a Rome hospital, while a 2-year old boy died in a Florence hospital.
3) The Civil Protection Department confirmed the death of the girl but could not immediately confirm the other casualty.
4) A train carrying liquefied gas derailed while traveling through a downtown neighborhood in the Tuscan seaside town of Viareggio at around midnight Monday. The derailment set off a massive explosion that caught residents as they slept. Dozens were injured.
2009-07-03
Italian train derailment death toll rises to 21
(APW_ENG_20090703.0059)
1) The death toll from a train explosion in Tuscany rose to 21 on Friday after a woman and a man died in hospital, Italian officials said.
2) The Civil Protection said about a dozen of the injured remained in serious condition.
3) A train carrying liquefied gas derailed around midnight Monday in the seaside town of Viareggio, setting off a massive explosion that consumed nearby homes. Most of the victims were severely burned and only about half of the dead have been identified.
4) Viareggio's damaged train station partially reopened Friday. Meanwhile, Italian railways Trenitalia said it had suspended transportation of all rail cars registered with U.S. rail and marine leasing company GATX.
5) The Vienna-based GATX Rail Europe owns the gas cars involved in the derailment. Italian officials have blamed the disaster on the breakage of a wheel axle of one of the cars.
Italian train derailment death toll rises to 22
(APW_ENG_20090703.0227)
1) The death toll from a train explosion in Tuscany rose to 22 Friday after three injured people died in hospital, Italian officials said.
2) The Civil Protection said about a dozen of the injured remained in serious condition.
3) A train carrying liquefied gas derailed around midnight Monday in the seaside town of Viareggio, setting off a massive explosion that consumed nearby homes. Most of the victims were severely burned and only about half of the dead have been identified.
4) Viareggio's damaged train station partially reopened Friday. Meanwhile, Italian railways Trenitalia said it had suspended transportation of all rail cars registered with U.S. rail and marine leasing company GATX.
5) The Vienna-based GATX Rail Europe owns the gas cars involved in the derailment. Italian officials have blamed the disaster on the breakage of a wheel axle of one of the cars.