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Train derailment sparks transport chaos in Italy

AFP
AFP - [email protected]
Train derailment sparks transport chaos in Italy
Archive photo: An "Italo" train from the private Italian company NTV (R) sits in Venice Santa Lucia station near a regional Trenitalia train on May 30, 2013. AFP PHOTO / GABRIEL BOUYS (Photo by Gabriel BOUYS / AFP)

Passengers across Italy were left stranded on Thursday after a train derailment caused the cancellation of dozens of trains, including high-speed services between the north and south of the country.

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Nobody was hurt when the carriage of the freight train came off the rails at around 2:20 am (00:20 GMT) between Florence and Bologna, for reasons that are still being investigated.

But it knocked down poles supporting electric cables used by the trains, suspending services across the network.

Italian rail firm Trenitalia announced at least 50 cancellations and delays of up to three hours, while other routes were diverted

"The aim is to restore services by early afternoon," the transport and infrastructure ministry said in a statement.

Around 160 passengers were stuck on a regional train for several hours until coaches arrived to take them to the station in Florence.

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