Major train crash causes anger in China

The last train crash on a similar scale took place in 1997 when 126 people died in Hunan province. Like the industrial accidents that kill tens of thousands of Chinese workers each year, the causes of the latest tragedy are rooted in the enormous stresses produced by Chinas sweatshop economy and the governments bureaucratic planning.

The accident happened on a bend, while the express train was travelling at high speed, outside the city of Zibo. Nine carriages of the T195 train left the rails, toppled over and landed in a ditch. The other 5034 train, on its way from Yantai in Shandong to Xuzhou in eastern Jiangsu province, also derailed after the collision. Local villagers rushed to pull trapped passengers out, using farm tools to smash train windows.

One passenger on the express train told the official Xinhua news agency most people were asleep, but some were standing in the isle waiting to get off at Zibo station. I suddenly felt the train, like a rollercoaster, topple to one side and then all the way to the other side. When it finally went off the tracks many people fell on me.

Chinese authorities quickly imposed strict controls over media coverage, blocking foreign journalists from speaking to survivors. Railway officials later revealed that 2,800 passengers were aboard the two trains. The catastrophe happened just on the eve of the May Day long weekend, when millions of people were travelling home to be with families or taking a short break.