Hundreds were injured and at least 50 people were killed when a commuter train crashed into a barrier at Buenos Aires station on Wednesday. After arriving to the horrific scene, rescuers forced open windows of twisted train cars to reach the trapped passengers as helicopters flew some victims to local hospitals. Hours after the accident, which occurred during the morning’s rush hours, Transportation Secretary Juan Pablo Schiavi said, “Never in my life had I seen anything like this.”
According to Schiavi, the train was traveling at 26 kilometers per hour (16 mph) when it entered the station around 8:30 a.m. He reported that no one knows what happened in the last 40 meters. The driver of the train, a 28-year-old man, had just begun his shift and had a good record. President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner of Argentina has declared a two-day mourning period for the lives lost. “The government and people of Argentina give their solidarity and weigh the pain felt by the families of the victims,” the president said in a statement.
