Mexico: 13 killed, dozens injured as train derails near Nizanda; rescue operation underway
Mexico: According to officials, the Interoceanic Train derailed while it was passing near the town of Nizanda. The train, which connects Oaxaca and Veracruz, was carrying 241 passengers and nine crew members when the accident occurred.
At least 13 people were killed and dozens others were injured after a train in which they were travelling derailed in southern Mexico on Sunday, said officials. The accident halted the traffic along a rail line connecting the Pacific Ocean with the Gulf of Mexico.
According to officials, the Interoceanic Train derailed while it was passing near the town of Nizanda. The train, which connects Oaxaca and Veracruz, was carrying 241 passengers and nine crew members when the accident occurred.
In a post on X (which was previously called Twitter), Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said 98 people were injured and of them, the condition of five is critical. She said she has instructed the officials, including secretary of the navy and the undersecretary of human rights of the Ministry of the Interior, to visit the site and help the affected families.
"The Mexican Navy has informed me that, tragically, 13 people died in the Interoceanic Train accident," Sheinbaum Xed.
Rescue operations underway
Meanwhile, Oaxaca state Governor Salomon Jara Cruz said multiple government agencies are at the spot and conducting the rescue operation. Jara said patient mobilization protocols remain activated and the government will keep providing updates regarding the injured passengers.
"As of now, 11 patients are at the General Hospital of Ciudad Ixtepec; 22 patients at the General Hospital of Juchitán “Dr. Macedonio Benítez Fuentes”; 29 patients at the IMSS Zone Hospital of Matías Romero, of which five will be transferred to the General Hospital of Tehuantepec, and 5 more of these patients are being referred to the General Hospital of Salina Cruz," he Xed.
The Interoceanic Train was inaugurated in 2023 by then President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador. The rail service is part of a broader push to boost train travel in southern Mexico, and develop infrastructure along the isthmus of Tehuantepec, a narrow stretch of land between the Pacific Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico.
The Mexican government plans to turn the isthmus into a strategic corridor for international trade, with ports and rail lines that can connect the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. The Interoceanic train currently runs from the port of Salina Cruz on the Pacific Ocean to Coatzacoalcos, covering a distance of approximately 180 miles (290 kilometers).
(With AP inputs)
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