23 Dead After Mexico City Subway Overpass Collapses

Dozens injured after accident on city's newest subway line
By Jenn Gidman,  Newser Staff
Posted May 4, 2021 6:32 AM CDT
Updated May 4, 2021 6:53 AM CDT
'Loud Thunder' on Mexico City Subway, Then a 16-Foot Plunge
Subway cars lie at an angle after a section of the subway collapsed in Mexico City on Tuesday.   (AP Photo/Marco Ugarte)

Rescue workers and firefighters converged in Mexico City late Monday after a subway overpass collapsed as a train was passing over it, sending the train plunging to the road 16 feet below and killing at least 23. "There are unfortunately children among the dead," says Claudia Sheinbaum, the city's mayor, with city officials adding that around 70 people were injured, seven of them seriously, reports the AP. One of the injured had been trapped, then freed from a vehicle crushed by the train, per Sheinbaum, who says no one else is still believed to be trapped, per CNN. One subway car was seen dangling for hours, delaying rescue efforts due to safety concerns; a crane had to be brought in to stabilize it. "We only heard a loud thunder, and everything fell apart," one survivor tells local media, via the BBC, adding that she and other passengers had to crawl out of their subway car through a window.

Sheinbaum says it appears "a support beam gave way" right as the train was passing over it in the borough of Tlahuac, per the AP. The accident, which took place at around 10:30pm local time, occurred on Line 12, the subway's newest addition, also known as the Golden Line, and one plagued by whispers of shoddy design and construction. After a strong earthquake hit the area in 2017, locals noted cracks in the structure, though transportation officials were said to have made repairs, notes the BBC. Marcelo Ebrard, who was mayor of Mexico City from 2006 to 2012, when the line was built, tweeted, "What happened today in the Metro is a terrible tragedy," adding that an investigation must be undertaken to find out what caused the accident. Sheinbaum says that investigation, and a review of the subway line's structure, is in the works. (More Mexico City stories.)

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