13 Killed in Portugal When Train Rams Into Another

A passenger train barreled into a station in this Lisbon suburb today and slammed into a waiting commuter train, killing at least 13 people and injuring more than 80, rescue officials said.

“We expect the death toll to rise,” said Gil Martins, who coordinated rescue crews of the Portuguese Red Cross at the scene. The Lisbon radio station Antenna Um said three more bodies had been found.

Two hours after the 12:15 p.m. accident, Martins said, rescue teams were still trying to cut through the twisted wreck of the express train to retrieve people trapped inside.

Authorities said 83 people had been taken to hospitals near the crash site and in Lisbon.

The state-run rail service, Portuguese Rail, said the southbound express train, en route from the central Portuguese city of Covilha to Lisbon, rammed the commuter train, which was stopped at the Povoa de Santa Iria station.

“The train hit and began to tremble furiously and made a terrifying sound. We don’t know how we came out alive,” said Isaura Pires Ribeiro, 62, who was riding on the express train and escaped unharmed.

The commuter train had left nearby Vila Franca de Xira minutes earlier and was scheduled to travel south to Lisbon, 10 miles away.

The accident was the 16th involving a Portuguese Rail train in two years. It was the worst since two express trains collided head-on at high speed Sept. 11 near the northern town of Alcafache. In that accident, 37 people were killed, 170 injured and an unknown number reported missing.