Sunday 25th July, 06:15 AM JST
GENEVA —
Swiss police began an investigation Saturday into a train accident that occurred the day before in the alpine canton of Valais in southern Switzerland, in which a 64-year-old Japanese woman died and 40 others, mostly Japanese tourists, were injured.
In a statement released Saturday morning, the Valais police said 40 individuals required hospital treatment, 28 of them Japanese.
According to local health authorities, as of 2:30 p.m. local time, 16 Japanese were still being hospitalized in six facilities across eastern Switzerland.
Nine are described as ‘‘seriously injured,’’ two of whom, women from Yokohama and Chiba Prefecture, aged 71 and 62, respectively, are in critical condition and remain unconscious in hospitals in Sion and Lausanne.
A total of 77 Japanese, 74 tourists and three travel guides, part of three tour groups, were in the train which derailed at 11:50 a.m. Friday between the towns of Fiesch and Lax. Police say approximately 210 people were on board.
Relatives of Japanese tourists involved in the accident departed Japan and are expected to arrive in Switzerland Sunday.
Local police said the cause of the accident remained unknown, and would be investigated by experts.
However, Hans-Rudolf Mooser, president of the Matterhorn Gotthard Bahn, the company that runs the rail service, said the rails could have been affected by high temperatures recorded in the past weeks.
He said that other possible causes included human error and problems with the trains. But given that the cars were relatively new, it is unlikely problems with the trains caused the accident, he said.
Mooser added that the victims would be compensated.
In Japan, ANA Sales Co, a tour operator affiliated with All Nippon Airways Co, said a 64-year-old woman from Osaka died during the accident when three cars of the six-car Glacier Express derailed and the last two cars overturned.
The company said that she was part of a group of 14 and one guide which had booked an eight-day tour of Switzerland through the company.
The Glacier Express, which has an average speed of 30 kilometers per hour, is famed for its stunning views of the Swiss Alps. Its 7.5-hour journey, in cars with specially fitted large windows, begins in Zermatt and crosses the Swiss Alps to luxury sky resort St Moritz.
link:
http://www.japantoday.com/category/national/view/swiss-police-begin-probe-into-deadly-train-accident
