In Switzerland, a train with 29 passengers on board (initially estimated at 80) derailed: the accident occurred around 07:00 today, 16 February, on the Frutigen-Briga line near Goppenstein, in the Canton of Valais. The causes have not yet been confirmed: according to initial reconstructions, an avalanche may have caused the derailment at the exit of the Stockgraben tunnel, given that rail traffic between Goppenstein and Brig was interrupted at least until 05:30 tomorrow, 17 February, due to an avalanche. According to the latest update at 12:02, 5 people were injured, of whom were transported to Sion Hospital. All other passengers were evacuated from the train.
The convoy, a RegioExpress train, left at 06:12 from Spiez, near Bern, in the direction of Brig. Swiss rail traffic has already been put to the test after a fire involved around forty cables in Lausanne station on Sunday 15 February, causing interruptions on the Lausanne-Prilly-Malley line.
The cantonal police confirmed through a post on Two ambulances, a helicopter and eight mountain rescuers responded to the scene, along with two fire and rescue trains from the BLS and FFS railways.
The location had already been affected by an avalanche last February 12, with access to the Lötschental interrupted for several hours. At the moment, in fact, a level 4 avalanche risk alert (High Danger) is in force in the Canton of Valais.
The derailment comes a few weeks after the serious train accident in Andalusia, Spain, which caused 45 deaths and over 100 injuries. The Swiss Federal Railways has not released any other official communications.
