By Canadian Press

Mexico City metro overpass collapses onto road; 15 dead

May 4, 2021 | 12:07 AM

MEXICO CITY — An overpass in Mexico City’s metro collapsed Monday night, sending a train plunging toward a road, trapping at least one car under rubble and killing at least 15 people, authorities said.

Mayor Claudia Sheinbaum said 70 people were injured, with 34 hospitalized, and people could still trapped inside the train, which was split in two and appeared partially suspended.

Video showed a car trapped under rubble, with dozens of rescuers searching through wreckage of the collapse structure. The overpass was about 5 metres above the road in southern Mexico City.

“A support beam gave way,” Sheinbaum said, adding that the beam collapsed just as the train passed over it.

Rescue efforts were briefly interrupted at midnight because the partially hanging train was “very weak” and a crane had to be brought in. There were still people trapped inside the train, though “we don’t know if they are alive,” said Sheinbaum.

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The accident happened on the metro’s Line 12, the construction of which has been plagued by complaints and accusations of irregularities.

“What has happened on the metro today is a terrible tragedy,” tweeted Mexican foreign minister Marcelo Ebrard.

The Mexico City Metro, one of the largest and busiest in the world, has had at least two serious accidents since its inauguration half a century ago.

In March of last year, a collision between two trains at the Tacubaya station left one passenger dead, injuring 41 people. In 2015, a train that did not stop on time crashed into another at the Oceania station, injuring 12 people.

E. Eduardo Castillo, The Associated Press