At Least 70 Die In Train Derailment In Cameroon; Hundreds Injured

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The death toll is rising at the site of a train derailment in Cameroon, with President Paul Biya saying the crash of the crowded car Friday killed more than 70 people and wounded 600 more. Bodies were strewn along the tracks as workers continued looking for others injured and dead in Friday's crash. Officials have put the death toll at 53 but said it will climb as they raced to transport more than 600 injured people to hospitals in the capital, Yaounde, and the port city where the train was going, Douala. The rescue workers and medical staff spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not permitted to speak to the press about the issue. The train carried about 1,300 passengers, instead of its capacity of 600. The collapse of a section of the main highway between Yaounde and Douala amid heavy rain earlier on Friday had blocked hundreds of vehicles on the road and prompted increased numbers of passengers to make the journey by rail. The 30-year-old railway line and train could not carry the load, officials told state radio. President Paul Biya ordered the evacuation of the injured to the country's two main cities because Eseka's hospital was overwhelmed, with only about 60 beds, said transport minister Edgard Alain Mebe Ngo'o. "I am calling on everyone to double efforts to save the lives of the injured," Ngo'o said. One of those injured died as he arrived in Douala, and "we are doing everything possible to save the lives of the close to 200 victims sent to Douala," said Governor Ivaha Diboua Dieudonne of the western Littoral region. The circumstances that led to the accident will be investigated, government spokesman Issa Tchiroma said.
The death toll from the October 21 crash of a Camrail train rises to at least 73 people with another 600 wounded.