3 arrested over high-speed train crash

ANKARA- Anadolu Agency

A Turkish court on Dec. 17 remanded three state railways employees in custody over last week’s high-speed train crash in the capital Ankara which claimed nine lives.

A Turkish State Railways (T.C.D.D.) dispatcher, switchman, and inspector were remanded on charges of “reckless homicide” by an Ankara court after questioning by prosecutors.

On Dec. 13, nine people were killed, including three mechanics, and 47 injured when the commuter train heading to the city of Konya ploughed into a service engine carrying out a track inspection and then crashed into a pedestrian overpass at the station in Ankara.

According to the statements of employees, the absence of a railway signaling system was to blame for the crash, claiming the train and the engine were on the same track for this reason. Authorities also examine the radio communications used by train station personnel and the staff on the train.