Trains in Sweden could be cancelled for the rest of the week due to derailment
Three people were taken to hospital after a train derailed in eastern Sweden when a railway embankment collapsed following heavy rains, police said, as weather agencies warned of more flooding.
The passenger train, which was carrying some 120 people, was headed to the city of Sundsvall when two of its four cars derailed near the city of Hudiksvall shortly after 12.30pm.
After police and rescue services arrived at the scene it was "determined that the railway embankment had been undermined by the heavy rain and collapsed."
"Currently, three people have been taken to hospital, the extent of their injuries is unclear," police said in a statement on Monday afternoon.
"It could have been much, much worse if the train was running faster," railway maintenance head at the Transport Administration, Anna-Pia Ling, told TT on Tuesday.
The train cannot now be moved until the rains stop, with Ling predicting that it may be the middle of next week before work in the area is completed if the rains continue.
All trains between Iggesund and Hudiksvall have been replaced with buses or are running on alternate routes, with Ling recommending that travellers contact the company they booked their tickets with for assistance.
Sweden's national weather agency SMHI had issued several "yellow alerts" for Monday, warning of strong winds, floods and heavy rains in multiple parts of the country as extreme weather "Hans" moved in across the country over the weekend.
The agency's alerts go from "yellow" through "orange" to "red," and SMHI had also issued red alerts -- signalling "very serious consequences for
society" -- for flooding on Tuesday and Wednesday. A similar warning was issued by the Norwegian Meteorological Institute on Monday, which especially warned of "extremely heavy rainfall" in the country's southern parts.
"In many places, the event will be among the strongest in the last 25 years," the weather agency said.
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The passenger train, which was carrying some 120 people, was headed to the city of Sundsvall when two of its four cars derailed near the city of Hudiksvall shortly after 12.30pm.
After police and rescue services arrived at the scene it was "determined that the railway embankment had been undermined by the heavy rain and collapsed."
"Currently, three people have been taken to hospital, the extent of their injuries is unclear," police said in a statement on Monday afternoon.
"It could have been much, much worse if the train was running faster," railway maintenance head at the Transport Administration, Anna-Pia Ling, told TT on Tuesday.
The train cannot now be moved until the rains stop, with Ling predicting that it may be the middle of next week before work in the area is completed if the rains continue.
All trains between Iggesund and Hudiksvall have been replaced with buses or are running on alternate routes, with Ling recommending that travellers contact the company they booked their tickets with for assistance.
Sweden's national weather agency SMHI had issued several "yellow alerts" for Monday, warning of strong winds, floods and heavy rains in multiple parts of the country as extreme weather "Hans" moved in across the country over the weekend.
The agency's alerts go from "yellow" through "orange" to "red," and SMHI had also issued red alerts -- signalling "very serious consequences for
society" -- for flooding on Tuesday and Wednesday. A similar warning was issued by the Norwegian Meteorological Institute on Monday, which especially warned of "extremely heavy rainfall" in the country's southern parts.
"In many places, the event will be among the strongest in the last 25 years," the weather agency said.
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