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Seven dead, 200 injured after US train derails in Philadelphia

Emergency personnel work the scene of a train wreck Tuesday in Philadelphia.

A US passenger train carrying 238 passengers and five crew members has derailed in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, killing at least seven people and injuring more than 200 others.

Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter confirmed at a news conference that at least seven people were killed in the accident on Tuesday night.

"It's an absolute disastrous mess," Nutter said. "I've never seen anything like this in my life."

Fire officials said more than 200 people on board the train were taken to area hospitals.

Authorities said they had no idea what caused the train wreck.
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“We do not know what happened here. We do not know why this happened,” Nutter told reporters.

The Amtrak railroad company said there were 238 passengers and five crew members aboard its derailed No. 188 train on route from Washington, DC to New York.

It said Amtrak service along the whole Northeast train corridor between New York and Philadelphia had been suspended.

Paul Cheung, an Associated Press employee on the train, said he was fortunate to be at the back of the train and the front of it “looks pretty bad” with numerous casualties.

Television footage showed emergency personnel loading injured people onto stretchers and backboards.

In March, at least 55 people were injured when an Amtrak train collided with a large truck that was stuck on the tracks in North Carolina.

AHT/AGB


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