Mexico train derailment: 13 killed, over 90 injured; videos from site show chaos

At least 13 people were killed and 98 were injured when the Interoceanic Train derailed on Sunday in southern Mexico, halting traffic along the rail line that links the Pacific Ocean with the Gulf of Mexico.

Officials said the train was carrying 241 passengers and nine crew members when it left the tracks as it passed a curve near the town of Nizanda, on the border of Oaxaca and Veracruz, AFP reported.

In a message on X on Sunday, Oaxaca state govt Salomon Jara said several government agencies had reached the site of the accident to assist the injured.

The Interoceanic Train was inaugurated in 2023 by then President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador. It forms part of a broader push to boost train travel in southern Mexico and develop infrastructure along the isthmus of Tehuantepec, a narrow stretch of land between the Pacific Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico.

The Mexican govt plans to turn the isthmus into a strategic corridor for international trade, with ports and rail lines that can connect the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. The Interoceanic Train currently runs from the port of Salina Cruz on the Pacific Ocean to Coatzacoalcos, covering a distance of approximately 180 miles (290 kilometres).

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