Beijing metro accident injures 30

A rush-hour accident on the Beijing metro Thursday evening left more than 30 people injured after two cars detached from a train on an above-ground section, authorities said.

The Chinese capital — where such incidents are rare — has been hit by snowstorms in recent days, although the cause of the accident was not immediately clear.

“The scene was evacuated and all the injured were taken to hospital to be treated,” the city’s transportation service said on social network Weibo.

“We have so far recorded more than 30 injuries. No deaths have been recorded,” the agency added.

The derailing occurred at 6:57 pm (1057 GMT), when the last two cars of a metro train separated from the carriages in front of them, authorities said.

Social media users reported seeing passengers fall to the ground, with some complaining of back pain.

Media images showed riders on the floor and partial lighting outages, while some commuters used emergency hammers to try to break the train windows to escape.

In other videos, firefighters were seen helping to evacuate an elderly rider, while the stranded passengers had to make their way through deep snow to leave the scene.

The train was travelling over an above-ground section of track when the accident happened, near Xi’erqi Station, heading toward the Changping district in the northern part of the city.

“We sincerely apologize for the accident that occurred this evening,” Beijing Subway, the train’s operator, said on Weibo.

“Passengers who left the premises unaccompanied during the evacuation and who are not feeling well can contact us at any time. We will take on the cost of care,” they added.