A Subway Train Collision In Mexico City Kills At Least One And Injures Dozens
A subway train collision in Mexico City kills at least one and injures dozens. According to the mayor of Mexico City, at least one person was killed and 57 other people were injured when two trains collided on Mexico City's subway system on Saturday.
Author:Suleman ShahReviewer:Han JuJan 09, 202320.5K Shares373.6K Views
A subway train collision in Mexico Citykills at least one and injures dozens. According to the mayor of Mexico City, at least one person was killed and 57 other people were injured when two trains collided on Mexico City's subway system on Saturday.
The Collision
Following the incident that occurred at the La Raza and Potrero stations on metro line 3, Mayor Claudia Sheinbaum stated at a newsconference that a train driver was in a critical condition as a result of the incident.
According to the mayor, four additional people were taken to the hospital after being rescued in an operation that involved the Defense Ministry, the Navy, and the agency responsible for Civil Protection.
Mayor Claudia Sheinbaum said:
“„As always, our priority is the victims and also that justice will be done.- Claudia Sheinbaum
The office of the public prosecutor in Mexico City announced on Twitter that it has initiated a probe into the collision that has been authorized by the government.
The subway system in this city is one of the busiest public transportation networks in the world. It serves a metropolitan area that is home to an estimated 20 million people, making it one of the most densely populated cities in the world.
Following the collapse of subway Line 12 in May 2021, which claimed the lives of 26 people and injured dozens more, the collision is the most recent fatal incident to strike the Mexico City metro system.
Construction flaws were the root cause of that collapse, as stated in a report compiled by the city government in 2021.
According to the findings of the investigation, one of the factors that contributed to the accident was improper welding of metal studs, which apparently were not well connected to steel beams that supported a concrete slab and elevated train rails. This was just one of many issues that contributed to the accident.
According to the report, some sections of the structure were missing metal studs, different types of concrete were used for the slab, and unfinished or poorly welded joints were some of the other factors that caused the elevated railway to buckle, which resulted in two subway carriages falling to the streets below.
Mexico City Metro Overpass Collapse
On May 3, 2021, an overpass carrying Mexico City Metro Line 12 collapsed beneath a passing train in the borough of Tláhuac. The overpass and the train's final two cars collided on Tláhuac Avenue near Olivos station, killing 26 people and injuring 98 others. It was the Metro's deadliest accident in nearly five decades.
The line experienced technical and structural issues, resulting in a partial closure of the elevated section—where the accident occurred—between 2014 and 2015. An earthquake in 2017 further damaged the span, and while it was repaired quickly, residents reported that problems remained years later.
The line was announced in 2007 as an underground line with the possibility of using rubber-tired trains due to the city's unstable soil, and it was scheduled to open in 2010.
However, due to budget and time constraints, the project was altered to operate both underground and overground with steel-wheeled trains, which researchers have identified as one of the causes of track instabilities and damage since the line's inception.
Empresas ICA, which built the system's other lines, collaborated on it with Alstom Mexicana and Grupo Carso (the latter owned by businessman Carlos Slim).
Claudia Sheinbaum, the city's mayor, commissioned an investigation into the causes of the collapse by the Norwegian risk management firm Det Norske Veritas (DNV). Their preliminary investigations suggested that it was due to flaws in the bridge's construction, such as a lack of functional studs combined with poor welds, which caused fatigue in the collapsed beam.
Further investigations led them to the conclusion that the bridge was designed and built without quality standards, that the construction and line design changes were not properly supervised, that there was a lack of fixing and safety elements, and that there were no periodic maintenance checks that would have detected the girder buckling—the latter statement is being challenged by the city government.
Despite the fact that Carso was the company in charge of building that section, the group denied any wrongdoing. Nonetheless, Slim agreed with the Mexican government to repair the section for free.
Final Words
In December 2021, the city attorney general's office filed charges against ten former officials involved in the project's construction and supervision (including the project director), who are awaiting trial for manslaughter, injury, and property damage as of January 2023.
Suleman Shah
Author
Suleman Shah is a researcher and freelance writer. As a researcher, he has worked with MNS University of Agriculture, Multan (Pakistan) and Texas A & M University (USA). He regularly writes science articles and blogs for science news website immersse.com and open access publishers OA Publishing London and Scientific Times. He loves to keep himself updated on scientific developments and convert these developments into everyday language to update the readers about the developments in the scientific era. His primary research focus is Plant sciences, and he contributed to this field by publishing his research in scientific journals and presenting his work at many Conferences.
Shah graduated from the University of Agriculture Faisalabad (Pakistan) and started his professional carrier with Jaffer Agro Services and later with the Agriculture Department of the Government of Pakistan. His research interest compelled and attracted him to proceed with his carrier in Plant sciences research. So, he started his Ph.D. in Soil Science at MNS University of Agriculture Multan (Pakistan). Later, he started working as a visiting scholar with Texas A&M University (USA).
Shah’s experience with big Open Excess publishers like Springers, Frontiers, MDPI, etc., testified to his belief in Open Access as a barrier-removing mechanism between researchers and the readers of their research. Shah believes that Open Access is revolutionizing the publication process and benefitting research in all fields.
Han Ju
Reviewer
Hello! I'm Han Ju, the heart behind World Wide Journals. My life is a unique tapestry woven from the threads of news, spirituality, and science, enriched by melodies from my guitar. Raised amidst tales of the ancient and the arcane, I developed a keen eye for the stories that truly matter. Through my work, I seek to bridge the seen with the unseen, marrying the rigor of science with the depth of spirituality.
Each article at World Wide Journals is a piece of this ongoing quest, blending analysis with personal reflection. Whether exploring quantum frontiers or strumming chords under the stars, my aim is to inspire and provoke thought, inviting you into a world where every discovery is a note in the grand symphony of existence.
Welcome aboard this journey of insight and exploration, where curiosity leads and music guides.
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