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Two dead as Sydney to Melbourne passenger train derails Train derailment: Driver and co-pilot killed in Sydney-Melbourne route
(about 3 hours later)
Two people were killed when a Sydney to Melbourne express train derailed near the Victorian town of Wallan, officials say. Two people were killed when a train carrying 153 passengers between Sydney and Melbourne derailed, officials say.
Police said that one of the two victims was the male driver. The crash occurred near Wallan, a town north of Melbourne on Thursday night.
Several other passengers were being treated for injuries, emergency services said. One person was airlifted to a hospital in Melbourne. Police said the male driver 54, and his female co-pilot, 49, died in the crash while 11 others had minor injuries.
Images showed a number of twisted carriages had left the track, with one on its side. An investigation is underway into the cause of the crash, which police say is unknown. Concerns have been raised about the condition of the track at the time of the accident.
It was unclear what caused the train to derail. Five carriages as well as the locomotive had come off the tracks, officials said. Pictures showed twisted carriages, with one on its side.
The train was reportedly carrying 160 passengers and five crew members when it left the tracks at about 19:50 local time (08:50 GMT) on Thursday, some 45km (28 miles) north of Melbourne, the Victorian state capital. It was "very lucky" that more people were not killed or injured, police told reporters on Friday.
It is understood to be the main long-distance service between Melbourne and Sydney. "It is a tragedy that unfortunately the pilot and the driver were killed in the incident, but I am amazed that there weren't more passengers at least injured or worse than what they were," said Insp. Peter Koger.
Passenger Rob Jennings told The Sydney Morning Herald how people were thrown around the carriage for around a minute as the train derailed. The train left the tracks at about 19:50 local time on Thursday (08:50 GMT), about 45km (28 miles) north of Melbourne, the state capital of Victoria.
"It just veered off, and all the carriages smashed into one another," he said. Passengers told Australian media they were thrown around the carriage for a minute as the train derailed.
"It just veered off, and all the carriages smashed into one another," Rob Jennings told The Age newspaper.
"People were tossing around … there was some screaming - everyone was just grasping on, some in the brace position, preparing for the possibility of something worse.""People were tossing around … there was some screaming - everyone was just grasping on, some in the brace position, preparing for the possibility of something worse."
Passengers also said the driver had announced that he would try to make up time for earlier delays. Earlier in the journey, the driver had also announced to passengers that he would try to make up time for earlier delays, passengers reported.
Paramedics from Ambulance Victoria said that "a large number of people are being assessed but are not believed to be seriously injured". The train is the main long-distance service between Sydney and Melbourne, and runs along tracks operated by the federal government.
They added that four people were taken to hospital "in a stable condition". Deputy Prime Minister Michael McCormack defended the track's condition on Friday.
Victoria's Country Fire Authority (CFA) said that five carriages, along with the train's engine, had derailed and that helicopters and ambulances were at the scene to assess injuries and transport victims. "No authority in Australia would allow a train to travel on an unsafe track. That just wouldn't happen," he said.
All train services that run on the affected line - which connects the stations of Seymour and Shepparton - have been cancelled while an investigation takes place. Victoria's rail union has said its drivers had previously refused to drive along the track.
Australia's Deputy Prime Minister Michael McCormack posted a statement on Twitter announcing that "a full and thorough investigation" would be carried out by the Australian Transport Safety Bureau and the national rail safety regulator. A "full and thorough investigation" would be carried out by the Australian Transport Safety Bureau and the rail safety regulator, said Mr McCormack.
"Our thoughts are with all those involved and their loved ones," it added. "Our hearts and thoughts go out to the families of those who have lost their lives," he said.
Train services along the affected line will be suspended until the investigation is concluded.
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