At least 31 people have been killed after a train travelling from Thailand's capital was derailed when a construction crane fell on top of one of its carriages, police said.
Dozens were injured in the incident on Wednesday morning in the Sikhio district of Nakhon Ratchasima province, about 230km north-east of Bangkok, the BBC reported.
The crane was working on a high-speed rail project when it collapsed, hitting a train heading for Ubon Ratchathani province, Reuters reported. The train derailed and caught fire.
Rescue work was under way after the fire was put out.
At least 195 people were on the train, based on its seating plan, the State Railway of Thailand said.
Thailand’s Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Transport, Phiphat Ratchakitprakarn, ordered a “thorough and comprehensive investigation” into the cause.
Those killed were in two of the three carriages hit by the crane, he said.
Local police told Reuters there were more bodies in the wreckage that had yet to be retrieved.
“Nineteen bodies have been recovered, but there are still some inside the train carriages that cannot be removed yet because the crane started shifting, so the team pulled back for fear of danger,” Col Thatchapon Chinnawong said.
Images shared by the ministry showed carriages overturned and firefighters extinguishing a blaze as smoke billowed out.
The elevated high-speed rail line, one of several under construction in Thailand, was being built above the existing track.
Compensation for families
The Italian-Thai Development Public Company Limited, the company contracted to construct the segment, issued a statement expressing regret and said it would provide compensation and relief to the families of those who died or were injured by the crane collapse.
In March last year, a 30-storey building under construction in Bangkok by a joint venture including the company collapsed, killing 89 people, after an 8.8-magnitude earthquake struck neighbouring Myanmar.
ITD's president Premchai Karnasuta was indicted in August along with 22 others on allegations of negligence and breaching construction regulations. The executive and 14 others denied wrongdoing when they were first arrested in May.
Chinese Foreign Ministry representative Mao Ning said at a press briefing that the Chinese government attached great importance to the safety of projects and personnel and was looking into the situation.
"At present, it seems that the relevant section was under construction by a Thai enterprise. The cause of the accident is still under investigation."
The cross-country high-speed rail project will connect to China through Laos. The government said last year that more than a third of construction had been completed in the segment connecting Bangkok to Nakhon Ratchasima and the whole line to Nong Khai at the border with Laos would be ready by 2030.
