Firefighters battle huge blaze after train derailment in western Russia

A freight train carrying gasoline derailed and burst into flames after colliding with a heavy truck at a railway crossing in Russia’s Smolensk region, near the Belarus border, early on Friday, Moscow Times reported.

As per the reports, the accident occurred when a truck entered the crossing as the train approached. Despite the driver’s attempt to brake, the locomotive was unable to stop in time and struck the vehicle. 

The crash caused the engine and 18 fuel tankers to leave the tracks, igniting fires in several of the cars. Emergency services reported that firefighters were working to extinguish flames in at least six of the gasoline-filled tankers.

The train driver and his assistant were taken to hospital with moderate injuries, while the truck driver is believed to have died. Investigators have opened a criminal case citing violations of railway safety regulations.

Rail services on the key route connecting Moscow to western Russia and Europe remain suspended as crews battle the blaze and clear the wreckage. Russia has a record of serious railway crossing accidents, often attributed to motorists ignoring warning signals.

In a separate incident in the Pskov region, authorities reported a railway explosion that forced the rerouting of at least two trains between Pskov and St Petersburg, though no injuries or derailments occurred.