At least 60 people died after a freight train derailed in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), an official said on Saturday.
The accident occurred late on Friday in Lubudi’s territory in Lualaba province.
“Preliminary assessment indicates that seven bodies were found by the families, 53 others are still at the scene of the accident,” Jean-Serge Lumu, a provincial official, told reporters.
Many of the injured, including a child under the age of 2 whose parents died in the accident, were taken to the nearby hospital in Lubudi, he added.
The train was on its way from the city of Mueneditu to Lubumbashi.
Although the freight train is not allowed to carry passengers, reports indicate that it was carrying “illegal passengers”.
The cause of the accident is not yet clear, but local media reported that seven cars had detached from the train before they ended up in a deep ravine with everyone on board.
In October last year, nine people died after a train derailed in the town of Kenzenze on Mutshatsha’s territory in the same province.
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