Swiss train derailed in landslide

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The accident occurred on a mountainous train line near Tiefencastel

A train has derailed at the top of a gulley after running into a landslide near the Swiss ski resort of St Moritz.

Eleven people are reported to have been injured and taken to nearby hospitals by helicopter, but there appear to have been no fatalities.

The accident left one carriage hanging over the edge of the ravine, while another plunged down before before lodging behind a tree.

The landslide happened after heavy rain in eastern Switzerland overnight.

Image source, EPA
Image caption,

Five of the injuries were classed as serious

Image source, EPA
Image caption,

The accident comes amid unusually bad weather for the month of August, normally a popular time for tourists

Five people were seriously injured and another six sustained slight injuries, said Graubuenden police spokeswoman Anita Senti.

A passenger who was on the train told the Swiss newspaper 20Minuten of his experience, external when the train made an emergency stop.

"We all rushed to the back of the carriage to put all of our weight there so that it wouldn't tip into the abyss," he said.

There were reportedly 200 people on the train when the accident happened.

The accident occurred on a mountainous train line near Tiefencastel, between Chur and St Moritz in the region of Graubuenden.

The Swiss rail system is widely seen as among the safest in the world. But Wednesday's accident comes only two days after three people died when their minibus was hit by a train in central Switzerland.