Quick thinking stops train falling into ravine
St Moritz – Passengers aboard a Swiss train told yesterday how they had to crowd into the rear of a carriage to stop it plunging into an Alpine ravine after the train was derailed by a landslide.
Police said that 11 people were injured after the eight-carriage train, which was travelling between the mountain resort of St Moritz and the regional capital of Chur, ploughed into rocks and mud left on the line by a landslide in a densely wooded area.
None of the 200 passengers aboard was killed, despite the accident leaving one carriage in the ravine and another hanging precariously over the edge.
Passengers said they had joined forces to prevent the second carriage slipping into the ravine by pressing towards the rear.
‘‘We all rushed to the back of the carriage to put all of our weight there, so that it did not tip into the abyss,’’ Stevens Bockor said.
Four rescue helicopters were sent to the area to help to carry the passengers to safety. Scores of others made their way down the line to the town of Tiefencastel.
The region had experienced heavy rains in recent days – waterlogged earth is a common cause of landslides.
A police spokeswoman said five people were seriously hurt and another six suffered slight injuries. All 200 passengers had been recovered without further incident, she said.