STRASBOURG: Two trams collided in a tunnel in a rare accident in the eastern French city of Strasbourg on Saturday (Jan 11), injuring dozens of people, authorities said.
The collision occurred near Strasbourg’s main train station, one of the busiest in France outside Paris.
Minister of Transport Philippe Tabarot said “probably around 36” people were injured in the accident, while firefighters put that figure at around 50.
A video posted by a witness on social media showed a chaotic scene with the two trams significantly damaged in a tunnel near the station.
One of the trams appeared to have derailed as a result of the impact, whose cause has yet to be established.
“The public prosecutor’s office opened an investigation,” the prefecture said.
A large security perimeter was set up in front of the station, where ambulances took up position, according to an AFP journalist at the scene.
Paramedics and firefighters loaded injured people secured on stretchers into ambulances. Other victims received first aid under the station’s glass roof.
Strasbourg was the first major French city to re-introduce trams in 1994, after the service closed in 1960.
Since the return of the vehicles, there have been no major accidents.
– ‘Brutal collision’ –
Strasbourg’s mayor Jeanne Barseghian and other officials rushed to the station.
The accident occurred shortly before 4pm local time.
“What we know at this stage is that there was a brutal collision between two trams, on the platform, under the station,” said Barseghian.
“There were a number of people on the trams,” she said, adding that there were no fatalities or people in “absolute urgency”.
Some of the injured were in a state of shock as a result of the “head-on” impact which was “relatively violent”, the mayor added, expressing her support.
Patrick Maciejewski, chairman of the board of directors of the Strasbourg transport company (CTS), said that there had been demonstrations in central Strasbourg, which had disrupted tram traffic.
“A number of trams had to be reorganised and put on standby. There was a traffic jam,” he said.
Rene Cellier, director of the Bas-Rhin fire and rescue service, said around 50 people had suffered non-fatal injuries such as scalp wounds, clavicle fractures, and knee sprains.
“Mostly trauma,” said Cellier.
“There are also around 100 people who have no particular injuries but are being seen by the doctors,” he added.
“BIG BANG”
Johan, a witness who declined to give his last name, said that one of the trams reversed at full speed.
“There was a problem with the brakes,” he told AFP. “We heard a big impact, a big bang.”
The accident occurred in “the worst place on the network, in a tunnel and in a very dense area”, given its location in front of Strasbourg station, said Julien Joly, a transport and mobility expert at Wavestone consulting firm.
But such a collision was “rare”, Joly said, adding that commuters can be reassured that trams “remain a safe mode of transport” as they largely travel at 30kmh when in the city centre.
Strasbourg saw a similar incident in 1998 when one tram collided with another in the same tunnel, wounding 17 people.
Located in the historic region of Alsace, the city is the official seat of the European Parliament.
