Zurich [Switzerland]: Several people are feared to have been injured after a train derailed near the village of Goppenstein in southern Switzerland on Monday morning, following an avalanche in the Swiss Alps, local media reported.
According to swissinfo.ch, police said the derailment occurred at around 7 am in the canton of Valais in southwest Switzerland. Authorities indicated that multiple passengers may have sustained injuries in the incident. Around 30 passengers were reportedly on board at the time.
Swiss Federal Railways attributed the accident to an avalanche that struck the train route.
The affected service was on the RE1 line, which operates between Bern and Brig. Route operator BLS AG told the Keystone-SDA news agency that the derailment took place in the Stockgraben Tunnel between Goppenstein and Hohtenn, beyond the Lötschberg Tunnel.
The train involved was a RegioExpress that departed Spiez at 6:12 am. BLS confirmed that approximately 30 passengers were travelling on the train when the derailment occurred.
Emergency services were deployed to the site, and further details regarding casualties and the extent of damage were awaited.
