Two Killed In Metro Train Crash On Madrid Test Track

[News_Editor]

Two killed in metro train crash on Madrid test track < br />

2012-08-09 04:34:02 GMT+7 (ICT)

MADRID, SPAIN (BNO NEWS) -- Two people were killed on late Tuesday evening when a metro train slammed into a barrier at the end of a test track in a southern suburb of the Spanish capital Madrid, police and emergency services said on Wednesday. Two others suffered minor injuries.

The accident occurred at around 7:45 p.m. local time when the metro train slammed into a barrier at a maintenance garage near Loranca station, which is located in the Fuenlabrada area of Madrid. It happened on a test track where metro trains are parked at night and is off-limits to trains which are in service.

Officials said 36-year-old Jose Manuel Perez Garcia, a maintenance manager of the Madrid Metro Short Circuit, was traveling with several people believed to be family members and an acquaintance. Perez Garcia was killed along with a 17-year-old Swiss girl, believed to be the family's babysitter.

Also in the metro train was Perez Garcia's four-year-old son and an unidentified woman believed to be a relative, although it was not immediately clear whether she is the mother of the child. Emergency services said both the child and woman were initially trapped but they suffered only minor injuries and were taken to an area hospital, where they were later released.

An initial investigation indicates that all four people were in the train's cabin when the accident happened, which is illegal according to the Metro's safety regulations. Some local news reports indicated that the metro train driver may have wanted to show the train to his family, but an investigation is still ongoing.

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